#I'll probably use them again next Halloween

[toyybox]

Spiderwebs #16: Tape IX (Senseless)

Masterlist

content: lab whump, captivity, immortal whumpee, eye injury, brief dismemberment

· • —– ٠ ✤ ٠ —– • ·

Heather was a mere mortal. Heather was nothing, compared to him. Jackie tried to keep this in mind the next day, when she returned with the scalpel. The threat of improvised surgery often dulled his sense of scorn.

“Stop that,” she snapped, the scalpel like a tiny spear in her gloved hand. “The table’s going to break.”

The table did shudder beneath him, but Jackie refused to move. On the contrary—he stepped farther along its length, farther away from the wicked glint of the blade. The scar on his chest had faded to a silvery line, but the memory of being torn apart was still alive and kicking. 

Heather now spoke in a tone that was marginally softer than before. Which wasn’t very soft at all, but it was something. “I have the drug, remember? You won’t feel anything.”

“Oh. Right.”

“So? Get down. Or would you rather do it without the painkillers?”

He clambered off the table with as much dignity as he could muster. He hoped to hell that the drug wouldn’t wear off early, or worse—not work at all. If it came to blows, he could start sobbing again, but somehow he knew that wouldn’t work a second time. 

There was that tiny red pill again. Two of them this time. And a glass of water, and that dreaded table with all the empty glass jars. All manner of steel implements were arranged before him, a bona fide orchestra of surgical instruments. Most of them he had seen before, which did not ease his apprehension at all.

“I’ll give you five minutes, then we’ll begin.” As she spoke, the recorder listened on from a safe corner of the table, away from all the jars. “Today's dosage is fourteen hundred milligrams. Administered twelve hours after previous dosage.”

“What’s the needle for?” The needle in question was at least six inches long, but otherwise indistinguishable from a normal sewing needle. Down went the water and the pills. Jackie now noticed a mild bitter taste, which lingered even after he swallowed. 

“Gee, I don’t know. It’s a surprise tool that will help us later.” She ripped the glass from his hands and placed it on the nightstand. “Stop asking questions, for God’s sake.”

Well, he wasn’t about to argue. When she was sure he would not speak, Heather turned her back to him. She began cleaning some kind of saw or blade with an abrasive-smelling, clear liquid and a soft white cloth. The room was filled with a chemical smell.

While he waited, the opioid took effect. The numbness spread through his body, at first through the tips of his fingers, then through his hands and arms, cutting off the feeling in his legs and chest, then finally his face. Even the bitter aftertaste faded on his tongue. The textures and touch of the outside world ceased to exist in any meaningful way. This time, even the dread in the back of his mind and the tension in his heart began to slow—not by much, but it was a noticeable difference. 

The cleaning of tools had concluded. She turned back to him. “Is the anesthetic working?”

He nodded.

Before he could react, she stabbed a scalpel into the side of his arm. Jackie opened his mouth to protest, but he hadn’t felt a thing. Not even the warmth of blood, dripping against his skin as she pulled the blade out. Those electric impulses had all but died. 

“The drug has blocked all pain receptors.” She put the scalpel down. “There aren’t many side effects, although Jackie’s immortality makes it unclear whether or not the opioid is toxic.”

“Sorry about that.”

“It doesn’t matter.” A spoon. Why was she holding a spoon? He couldn’t see any food. “It’s time for the experiment. Keep your eyes open. Try not to blink.”

Eyes? 

Oh. Oh no. 

Despite all the impossible things his body had healed, Jackie was not thrilled at this prospect. But it wouldn’t hurt, at least. And he couldn’t say no. He’d have to suck it up and let her finish the test. How bad could it be? What was a little bit of blindness to the undying, eternal Jackie? What harm could a utensil do to someone like him?

“I don’t see how this benefits science,” he did say, however. “Pun not intended.”

She gestured with the spoon, shrugging. “Oh, you know. Something interesting might happen.”

Something interesting. Right. To each their own, he supposed. 

“Sit down on the chair. Don’t move,” she added sharply. “Don’t start crying again, either. It won’t help you.”

He wasn’t planning to, anyway. He sat on the chair, next to his desk, as still as possible. Heather approached him, spoon in hand. It was funny to see such an ordinary thing held with such weight and importance. He could see his reflection on the surface, like a funhouse mirror image. The concave curve lit up as she moved closer. A stripe of shiny metal, one that would soon be embedded in his sockets, digging out the delicate jelly-like flesh. Ew. Why did Jackie have such a morbid imagination? It would be painless, but he still couldn’t help but flinch.

Her hand grasped his shoulder. “It will be okay.” Such a cold tone for such a comforting line. “Look at the stairs.”

Behind her was the flight of stairs. A straight line of steps. Underneath, there was a triangular section of wall. He noticed a sort of seam there, a ridge bumping out. There must have been a closet dug into that space, or another kind of storage area. Now, it was covered up, with nothing but a ridge to remember it by. He wondered why. Seemed pointless to Jackie. Waste of a good closet. Maybe there had been an infestation, or a—

Jackie didn’t feel the spoon touch his eye, but he saw it. On instinct, he screwed both his eyes shut. He tried to open them, but it was a struggle to stop blinking.

He heard her growl, even when he couldn’t see her. “I don’t need to cut your eyelids out, do I?”

That was decidedly not a nice mental image. “I can’t help it.”

“Fine.” Her hand lifted from his shoulder. Instead, he saw it grasp his face, from the corner of his eye. “I’ll hold them open. Don’t look away from the stairs, or so God help you.”

“Yeah, yeah.” What would normally be an uncomfortable position without the drug was now only a strange one, as she pried his right eye open. 

The stairs. Right. The stairs. What about the stairs? They weren’t carpeted, as they were in his childhood home. That was probably for the better, considering all the blood he shed. What else was there to say about them? It didn’t matter, anyway—his vision went blurred, unfocused. Dots of red filled his sight. He could hear the squishing sound as his eyeball was gouged out. Wet, loud, as if someone was crushing up gelatin. A wave of nausea plugged up his chest. He fought the urge to push her away. He fought the urge to pull back. His hands staggered to the arms of the chair. He grasped them hard, as someone in a car crash grasps the wheel. There was no pain, not even a slight pressure, but it was nevertheless unpleasant. 

Then, his vision disappeared completely. At least, in that one eye. Heather pulled away. There was a final squelching sound. Then, the sawing of a scalpel across nerves. A final snap… and then it was over. The spoon lowered to her side. 

With what remained of his sight, he glanced at the bloody eye in her hand—he then quickly looked back at the stairs. Her instructions aside, it wasn’t a pretty view. 

“You can’t see through this, can you?” The awe in Heather’s voice was evident. A stilted sense of pride flickered in him, even though immortality was less of a talent and more of an unconscious spasm.

“No.” He let himself blink—Jackie realized that he hadn’t felt the urge to blink for a while now. 

“Fascinating.” Her head tilted backwards, towards the recorder. “The eyes heal slower than the heart, which I hadn’t expected. That’s all semantics, in any case. On to the next eye.”

The removal of his left eye went a little more smoothly. He knew what to expect, so it wasn’t as big of a shock when his vision went completely dark. He hadn’t grown accustomed to those noises at all, however. It was a relief when the spoon left his sockets and all went silent.

Jackie closed his eyelids. He opened them. Still nothing. The basement had been plunged into a flat shadow, devoid of depth or direction. Touch and sight—he was two senses down.

The sudden loss was dizzying. Even the comfort of touch, the pressure of plastic against his palm and the solidity of the ground, even that was forfeit. There was nothing to steady him. Nothing to lean against. Nothing familiar, nothing loyal or true. That safety had been cut from his hand, leaving only the maps of memory to guide his movements. 

He could not halt the steady stream of panic passing through him, now that he only had his hearing and smell to rely on. And those senses were barren at best. The silence offered nothing, and all he could smell was blood and cleaning chemicals. 

“They’ll grow back, I’m sure.” Heather’s voice cut through his thoughts. Following that was the unscrewing of a jar and the squish of eyes pressed against glass. “Can you see anything? Anything at all?”

“No. It’s lights out for me, doc.” He rubbed his face—a pointless gesture, since he, you know, couldn’t feel anything. “You’re sure they’ll grow back?”

“Probably.” An uneasy silence broke her sentence. “I mean, all your internal organs grew back. I’m sure it’s fine.”

“I hope so. I’ll be bored as hell without them.”

“Well.” Another pause. “I could get you a radio. If you want one. Maybe a record player. You like music, don’t you?”

“I guess.” 

She did not reply. In that awful intermission, he had nothing to occupy himself with but the sound of his breathing. The sound of her breathing, too, and the occasional rustling of fabric. His unease did not lighten or leave. How was he supposed to escape if he couldn’t see anything? The thought of being blind wasn’t nearly as upsetting as the thought of being dependent on Heather. The nausea rose in tempo, a steady roiling wave against his chest. 

He was ready to start dry-heaving, but just that moment his vision returned. Blooming, bursting into view, the bright light, the almost painful intensity of it. At first, there were only a few spots, which quickly bled into great patches, until it all returned. Never was there a more beautiful sight. He blinked until the white light eased into familiar shapes. Heather’s basement. He could see it all. The bed, the lightbulb, the uncarpeted stairs. And there was Heather herself! Jackie had to admit he was glad to see her, if only because it meant he hadn’t lost his ability to see.

The relief etched on her face mirrored his own. “See? I told you it would be fine.”

“I didn’t doubt you for a second.” He managed a weak grin. “Is the experiment over now?”

“No, actually.” She raised the spoon with a matching smile. “A few more rounds couldn’t hurt.” 

A… few more rounds. Once was enough, Jackie thought. But he couldn’t refuse, could he?

Her smile widened to Chesire proportions. “Oh, come on. Do you really not find any of this interesting?“

“If I’m being honest? No.” His disappointment was apparently not as subtle as he imagined. “Whatever. You’re right, it couldn’t hurt.”

“That’s the kind of enthusiasm I love to see.” She paused. “Pun not—you know—“

“I get it. Hurry up and gouge me, will you?”

She frowned a bit at his wording, but continued. Three more times. By the third time around, he had acclimatized to this strange ritual. His vision would blank out, he’d wait a few minutes, and it would return good as new. The only real problem was his increasing boredom. He wondered how it looked from Heather’s perspective. Probably didn’t look very pretty, considering his entire eyeball was reshaping itself. Although, maybe there was a strange beauty in that. An uncanny sort of vividness. An evocative thrill in all that gore. 

At last, she put the spoon away, which was now covered in a mess of reds. In a jar resided a pile of his eyes. All exactly the same, dark irises and bloodshot whites, accompanied by splashes of crimson here and there. A revolting sight, dulled a little by how casually Heather was treating it.

Jackie leaned forward in his chair for a closer view. “You��re keeping those?”

She gave him a curt, chiding look, as she picked up the large saw. “That’s none of your concern. I wouldn’t expect you to understand the importance of this.”

Heather was correct in that regard. He didn’t have the faintest idea. “I don’t know. Seems like a waste of a good jar to me.”

The glint of silver entered his view before he had a chance to move away. The blade of the saw rested against the edge of his mouth. The motion was patient, almost tender. 

Heather leaned forward. “Are you sure you want to talk like that before I remove your tongue?"

“Please don’t.” He tilted his head as far back as it would go. “I’ll shut up now.” 

“Good.” Her reply came with an amused tilt. The saw lifted from his skin. She then examined Jackie, as a butcher examines a sow. Her stare gleamed with an excitement that made him profoundly uncomfortable. “Now, I think it’s safe to say we can try something bigger. How about... an arm?”

He sighed and held out his left arm. 

The saw she had chosen for the dismemberment was even longer than the bone saw, with a great rectangular section of steel atop a curved handle. She practiced her swing a few times, just below the elbow, grazing the skin like a batter preparing to strike out.

This was something he didn’t need to witness. Something he would definitely prefer not to witness. His dreams already had enough gore for one lifetime. Jackie turned his head away and screwed his eyes shut. He held his breath. If nothing else, he hoped it would be a clean cut. Nice and quick. 

“You can relax now. It’s done.”

“Oh.” That was faster than he expected.

“Hold on, I need to write this down.” Jackie did not open his eyes, but he could hear the shuffle of papers and the clicking of a pen. “Subject’s limbs grow back remarkably quickly, considering how much organic matter is removed. I would give it another ten minutes. That means the estimated total time is…” The pen scratched something down. “Fifteen minutes, maybe?”

“What’s it look like? My arm?”

She clicked her tongue. “Bad. Keep those eyes closed, I’d say.”

“Good idea.” What Heather was planning to do with his dismembered arm, Jackie could not imagine. Then again, Jackie wasn’t a cold-blooded killer who collected organs for fun. His imagination was somewhat limited. 

“Alright, that looks good as new.” Jackie opened his eyes to find her examining his arm, devoid of any injury aside from a raw scar that circled his elbow. “Try moving that for me.”

He lifted his arm, flexed his fingers, rolled his wrist. The injury hadn’t stiffened his movements in the slightest. 

“I expect you’ll feel sore later, but it’s nothing an Aspirin can’t fix.” And now, the needle. “One last test, okay? The opioid should wear off soon, so I’ll get this over with quickly.”

“And what is this, exactly?” He shifted further back into the chair. Now that she mentioned it, he was starting to feel the slightest hint of heat, pricking the edge of his skin. Along with that came the shudder of something colder along his spine, tensing his heart. What would he do if the drug cut out early? Whatever she was planning, it couldn’t be pleasant. 

“I’ve tested your sense of sight.” She leaned over him, placed her hand securely around his jaw. “Now, I want to see how your hearing is affected.”

The needle entered his ear. It wasn’t painful yet, but he could feel the cold steel, along with a slight pressure. Then, his other ear. 

The loss of his hearing wasn’t nearly as distressing as the loss of his sight, knowing that it would come back. In fact, he hadn’t even noticed it missing at first. All at once, every noise ceased to exist. The steady buzz of the light and the rhythm of his breathing, even the faint click-click-click of the recorder, all faded into a calming quiet.

Heather waved her hand in front of his face. He tilted his head. Oh, she was speaking. Saying something. He could not understand a lick of it, of course. 

“I can’t hear you, idiot.” He flinched as she tightened her grip on his jaw—he could actually feel it now, feel the pressure of her nails. “Sorry. But I can’t.”

She let go and gestured to her lips.

“I’m not good at reading lips,” he protested. “Write it down. You have a journal, right?”

She shook her head, now gesturing to the instruments, saying something with increasing passion. He caught the words expensive and waste of paper—a simple yes or no would work, but it got the point across. Then, she pointed to the journal, then at him.

“Are you asking about my notebook?”

She nodded.

“Do you… want it?”

She nodded slower, pointedly.

“Right.” He made a show of searching the room. “I must have… lost it. Sorry.”

That triggered another rant. The tone of it was evident on her face, even if it didn’t reach his ears. She gestured to the room as she spoke, then to him, then to the scalpel, then back to him—he hoped that didn’t mean what he thought it meant—then at his nightstand. 

And then, her lips stopped moving, with the tempo of an engine running itself down, as she seemed to realize how confused he was. Her expression softened, but not in a comforting way—in the way a cat goes still before its pounce. 

She tapped her watch, then held up five fingers. Five minutes. Then, she crossed her legs and waited. For his hearing to return, most likely. Jackie was dreading that moment.

A shrill pop, above the side of his jaw, interrupted his dread. It didn’t hurt too much, but it did hurt. The ache dragged along his face. He pressed a hand to his ear. The hum of white noise filled in that ringing silence, then the steady whirring of the recorder, then the sound of his sharp inhale, and finally the twisting of fabric as Heather moved to him. 

“Can you hear me?”

He nodded, before putting a hand to his other ear as it healed. 

“Good. Now explain.”

“I lost it! What do you want me to explain?” He straightened his shoulders from their unconscious hunch.

“You lost it.” She held up two fingers. “Jackie, you’re locked in a single room. There are two possible explanations. Either you’re lying—“ she put down a finger—“or you’re sneaking out of the basement.” The remaining finger tapped against his chest. “Do either of those options sound good?”

”No.”

“Then explain to me what really happened.”

“Well…” He’d gotten out of one bad situation with his words. He could get out of another. “I was using the notebook. Then I fell asleep. I must have dropped it under the bed or something. It’s fine, I’ll get it later.”

“What were you using it for?”

Should he be honest? No, that was more than he wanted her to know. “Writing.”

“Writing what?”

What did people write? Could he convince her that he was drafting a novel? It would be a hard sell. What else? “Nothing. Never mind.”

“You fucking liar.” 

“What? No, I—“ All the muscles and veins in Jackie’s body screamed at him to run, to get away, to hide, to fight, to do something and not just sit there like a terrified punching bag. Then again, where would he hide? In the bathroom sink? Fight with what, his stunning good looks? Running would make things worse. Better to wait it out.

After all, what good would this tiny rebellion do? The Americans had armies chock-full of weapons. Even the peasants of France had their guillotines and gun bayonets. Jackie had nothing. Appeasement was his only option. There was no point in shooting a rifle without any bullets. 

She stood up and stepped over to the recorder. The spools ceased to spin. Now he was alone with Heather. When had he started thinking of the recorder as a separate entity? It was a comforting thought, that someone else was watching, someone other than his captor. It meant that she couldn’t hurt him, not while a witness was listening in. He knew that was just pretend, but it was all he had. Grasping for straws like he was drowning, holding on to the riptides around him. 

And once that recorder cut off, the only barrier in his mind, his terror came flooding in. God’s holy cleansing in a world gone senseless, a wrathful sea to erase what remained. He was left to drown with the heathens and pigs. Left alone, all alone. 

· • —– ٠ ✤ ٠ —– • ·

Taglist:

@theelvishcowgirl

@lthrboy

@whumpy-wyrms

[nouvellevqgue]

✦ WHO'S FRED?, M. VERSTAPPEN

other than being his cat lady, his girlfriend got her master in halloween dress-up too.

A SEQUEL TO: MISS CRAZY CAT LADY. . .

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OCTOBER 29, 2022

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OCTOBER 2023

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[kozachenko]

(Click the image for better quality)

Yipeeee that Keiki and Mayumi fanart I posted the WIP of is finally done woooo- This piece was a very experimental one that I'm kind of OK on. Maybe because I've just gone insane looking at it for so long and I'm my own worst critic lol.

Artist's Notes;

So I've once again been playing around with my rendering style, mainly because I have been wanting to improve my lighting for a while now and as I was just scrolling through Tumblr, I saw some of the official art for that one webcomic-turned-animated-TV-Show Lackadaisy and was immediately inspired. I also have seen a technique a few times in the past where the lineart and shading are merged together, so I've been meaning to try that for a little while.

I did some experimentation on this one sketch of Keiki I posted in my sketch dump and I really liked the results of it, so I carried those over to this piece.

I ended up scaling up Keiki and Mayumi from the original WIP because I felt like they were both getting lost in the composition, and I'm glad for that because I think it works a lot better. I'm not a fan of how Mayumi's sword turned out at all, but it's not really meant to be the focus of the piece so eh. Overall, I think I could do better with my colours, probably because with Keiki and Mayumi's colours, I did them flat in greyscale and then used a brush on the overlay blend mode to colour all of them over, after which I changed the base layer for their colours from white to yellow and then lowered the opacity so it all went together better. I also decided to use gradient maps for a lot of the background elements, mainly to experiment with getting in my values first to make them pop out more. I ended up finding a really nice sky gradient on Clip Studio Paint that I really liked, and that kinda helped to establish the colour scheme of the background a lot. I think the whole "start in greyscale then colour" thing really works better with painterly styles rather than more illustrative ones, and while it is good at making sure your values are more readable, I honestly don't think I have the skill level to pull that off yet. Honestly, I think I've been looking at this drawing too long or maybe I added too much to it, but I wish I could've made the colours less monochromatic, but I'll just save that for the next piece I do.

I do love how the flame (...well it's more of a weird space rift than anything in this piece) and the lighting turned out, those were fun to do. I was initially struggling with the flame and how Mayumi is positioned in front of it before realizing "Oh wait! This is a weird abstraction of a weird creature! I don't have to follow the laws of anatomy!" and just dislocated it's flamey bottom jaw from the main body. I also changed the colours of it since I was really not liking how incredibly bright it was when it had lighter colours. Again, the gradient maps served the more painterly style of the flames well.

I also love how Mayumi turned out. I could do her sleeves better but that's more of just me needing to study how those types of sleeves fold in that position more. I'm also very happy with the posing, the technique I used for that was taking photos of myself in the positions I wanted, blocking in the silhouette and then modifying that by adjusting it to my lines of action that I drew on top of the original photos, and then sketching over the silhouettes and drawing in the shapes of the hands overtop of the photo if I needed to get the fine details right. As for what I do to take the pictures myself, I use a tall chair I have, prop up my phone with a phone stand, put on a ten second timer and scramble to get in position. Yes, I did have to use a bunch of thin markers I had to try and get the hand positioning on Keiki's pose right, yes I do have a fake sword that I used to get the positioning of Mayumi's arms and hand right, the sword was for an old Halloween costume from several years ago. I really like how both Keiki and Mayumi turned out in this drawing, I'll have to play around with these designs for them more in future drawings.

Also, if you wanna know why I draw buildings like that, when I watched Fantasia 2000 as a kid (One of the Disney movies where they make really beautiful animations to classical music) the way they drew the buildings in the first few sections Rhapsody in Blue segment (the jazz one with the cities) changed my brain chemistry and now whenever I need to draw buildings really quickly, I refer back to that. Since the buildings aren't really the main subject, I didn't put much thought into them.

As you can tell I am very tired of this piece, mainly because I made things harder for myself by overcomplicating the process compared to what I usually do, mainly with the whole "starting in grayscale then adding colour." I'd honestly just prefer having a black layer set to colour that I can just toggle on and off when I need to see the values, but it was good to experiment. And that was mainly the point of this whole drawing, to experiment. I'm definitely going to have to play around with this new style I'm going for, mainly because I liked how it turned out a lot in the augmented Keiki sketch, and also because I want to find ways of making it suit my style more. I also really want to keep experimenting with my lighting like this, it's very fun. Last but not least I am never starting in greyscale again because dear god I do not like the workflow it forced me into. I don't have a problem with the method itself it's mainly just a skill issue lol.

If you wanna read my headcanons for these two, I put them in my WIP post, so you can read them there if you want to. The more I look at this the more I prefer the simplicity of my WIP. I might go back to this and just take away the fancy colours and effects to see what it looks like without all of that stuff and reblog this post with that drawing, but for now, I don't think I can look at this drawing again for a while.

[sebsbarnes]

letters to a loved one || tangerine

tangerine x reader

summary: the only form of communication you and tangerine can use when he is on a mission is email, however, as the weeks and months go by, your words have been left unanswered.

warnings: angst

word count: 1.4k

masterlist

a/n: this is a lot different than my normal works so i hope you enjoy this different format

aug 5th, 2022: i know it's only been two days since you left but i miss you so much already! good luck today, kick some ass!! mwah! xoxo

aug 15th, 2022: hi honey. i hope the mission went well a few days ago! even though email is the safest way we can communicate while you're gone i know you can't always respond even if you're in a safe house. i'm not too worried, i know how skilled you and lemon are. tell him i say hi! i can't wait for you to be home, you estimated you'd be back on the 17th so i have a nice dinner planned. <3 love you so so much my sweet tang!

aug 27th, 2022: hey tang, i can't lie and say i'm not a tiny bit worried but i keep telling myself you've been gone longer before with zero communication. maybe it feels different now because of how long we've been together. i miss waking up to you and grabbing our keys and heading out for the day. if you see this message me back! even if you can't fully respond i'll settle with a smiley face if i must! haha. oh by the way i still cooked that dinner i had planned for us, it came out soooo yummy. but it took so long omg! you're lucky i love you and i'm willing to spend 8 hours in the kitchen again. it will probably taste better this time since you will be by my side. love you lots!

sept 12th, 2022: i only just saw the news of the bullet train derailment in japan on august 5th. that was your mission wasn't it? you said the 5th. i'm worried more now, i can't lie, but like i tell you every day i know how skilled you are. even though i never want to wish you are in a hospital i hope that's where you are recovering with lemon by your side. when you get the chance please email me back, okay? i love you.

sept 14th, 2022: tangerine if you see this please email or call me.

sept 30th, 2022: i wish i could talk to you just once. one word so i know you are okay. i can't reach lemon either. i wake up every day hoping you will be laying next to me. please, please give me something so i know you are alright? anything. where are you tangerine? i don't want to keep crying but that's all i can do. sit here in our empty house and cry. the walls feel like they are closing in on me. i went to our favorite breakfast spot the other day and i got that really sweet older lady with the grey curly hair as my waitress. she asked where you've been. i don't know how much longer i can keep saying you are gone for work and people believe it... i no longer believe it either. i hate typing it out. i don't want to believe something awful happened but something did, didn't it? i can feel it in my body. please reach out to me, i miss you so much and i love you so so much tangerine, please.

oct 26th, 2022: i love halloween, you know that more than anyone. decorations everywhere, piles of candy, and everyone dressing up pretending to be someone else for the night. now i feel bad about how much i bugged you about this year's halloween. my friends keep telling me to come out and join them, but if i'm being honest it's hard to do anything these days. it doesn't help that they think you just left me, ghosted me i guess. but they don't know what you do for work and i can't tell them. so i have to listen to them talk shit about you and i sit there trying to convince them you aren't this evil guy who ditched me and never looked back. maybe i should listen, maybe it's easier to believe you just left me than admitting to myself you're no longer here. i'm holding out, i'm trying so fucking hard to, tan. maybe in some sick joke you will pop up on halloween dressed in some stupid costume with a mask covering your face and in some grand reveal you will pull the mask off and i'll be in your arms again. it's wishful thinking. well, i have to go now, i'm meeting with a co-worker. love you.

dec 1st, 2022: i should be waking up this morning with your arms wrapped around me nearly crushing every bone in my body. but i didn't. and i haven't since the beginning of august. is it cruel now to admit i think you are gone. i really think you are and part of me has thought this since i saw the news of the bullet train. i feel scared. i'm starting to forget the little things about you. i can't play back the sound of your laugh in my head. i can't really picture the way your eyes crinkled. it makes me feel ill. i don't want to forget the small details about you. i crave to whisper goodnight and i love you to you. i crave just for your body next to mine. in the most innocent forms i crave you, like the way you'd absentmindedly play with my hair or pull out my chair or charge my phone when i always forget. the simple things i'm missing the most. i didn't realize i had so many forms of love until you've been gone. happy anniversary, dear.

jan 17th, 2023: tangerine, i'm not sure why i opened this email account. it's been over a month since i've checked it. maybe it was because i heard your favorite song earlier and thought of you a bit more than usual these days. i secretly hoped there would be a new message but that's foolish of me.

april 7th, 2023: Dear Tangerine, I know you won't read this email, but I felt as though I needed to explain what life has been like recently. My friends no longer bring you up in conversation which I am grateful for. I had to stop visiting our favorite breakfast place, each time I went they asked about you, even as recently as three weeks ago. I will miss their egg sandwich that you recommended to me on our third date but it is better off I no longer go there. Work has been great, a bit busy, but good. I removed your picture from my desk at the beginning of the new year. I saw the way my co-workers would stare a bit too long at it, I guess seeing it reminded them how I never mentioned you anymore. Speaking of co-workers, a few emails ago I mentioned I was meeting up with one of them. We've been seeing each other a lot outside of work, I enjoy their company. I can never say this to them but when they kiss me and hug me I sometimes think it's you. That's wrong to admit especially since I think I'm developing feelings for them, but they will never see this. They are kind and treat me well which I know you would be pleased to hear. I packed up your clothes in my house and put them in a box. I couldn't keep looking at them. I cried so much that I don't think I can cry again for years to come. I would hug your shirts and jackets so much that they lost your smell. I regret that a bit. I opened the box a few days ago and it smelled like me. Almost all signs of you are gone now that the remnants of your cologne is worn off the fabric. I think I might sell the house. It's too big for a single person now. It's too quiet in here and it almost feels like someone is watching me, it doesn't feel safe. Maybe that's because you provided me with safety. I'm not doing much today, it's actually pretty early right now, maybe I'll cook that dinner I never got to cook for you. I haven't since that day. I'm realizing how silly I sound in my own head as I type these words. Maybe I'll invest in a journal soon.

[melswifeasf]

Safest in your arms pt 10

previous chapter || next chapter || series page

Pairing: Georgia Miller x fem!oc

Summary: fall fest was supposed to be a fun activity for Samantha but it turned into nothing but a huge disappointment.

Warnings: (18+) MDNI, cursing, age gap relationship (18 and 30) grooming.

HALLOWEEN WAS THE BEST time of the year which all six friends could account for. they could dress slutty, get drunk and go to parties the whole weekend. it wasn't until their sophomore year they ditched the whole 'binge scary movies and stuff their faces with candy' deal and started going out instead. they had wanted to go to a party that night but none of them had planned a costume and Ellen had said she preferred her daughter to just go out on Saturday instead. Samantha didn't push it, it wasn't like her to do so.

the group of friends were in Matthews like most weekends. they were all sitting on the couch except for Natalie and Oliver who were on the floor like they had been last time they were there the last they were there. it was almost midnight and she thought by now she would be with a certain blonde but her friends were very persistent on her staying and she couldn't say no. even then that didn't stop her from texting her.

🍑 : are you gonna be at the festival

tomorrow?

S: prob? depends on if my friends

are going

S: are you?

🍑: i have to since Paul is running for

mayor again, he needs everyone in

the office with him.

S: does this mean Georgia Miller is

going to dress up?

🍑: i have to do that?

S: ofc you do, ur in the Mayors office

you kind of don't have a choice

🍑: does that mean your dressing up?

S: for the festival? no lmao.

S: i prob will later though, i think we're

going to some party

🍑: will i be able to see your costume?

S: i'll send pics;)

🍑: i'll be looking forward to it

🍑: what will your costume be?

S: idk tbh, we're all dressing up together

but they can't decide on what it should

whilst she waited for a response from the blonde she put her phone face down in her lap and turned her head to look at her friends. she was laying her head on Jades lap, her hair was being played with softly. Nia had Samanthas legs on her lap and Matthew was sitting beside the brunette with a respectable space between them. it was understandable that they wanted to keep things between them under wraps, especially considering they were still taking things slow and Oliver was overly protective when it came to Nia and her love life. she only ever had one boyfriend during her Junior year but it only last six months because Oliver would always try and scoot himself in between them. it wasn't fair, Nia never did that with him and Nat.

"i think we should go as nuns" Matthew said and looked up from his phone. they all laughed.

"the day i see you in a nun outfit will probably be the day that i die." Jade said with a chuckle.

"you putting that on would be an insult to nuns and i'm not even religious like that," Natalie said.

Matthew rolled his eyes, "okay i get it, i like sex." he shrugged. Samantha wondered if he was actually offended or if he was just acting like that because he always did. a part of her would believe he was offended, especially since the girl he currently had a thing with was sitting right beside him and listening to everything. although that shouldn't matter, Nia knew who Matthew was since the day they met and it's not like all of that knowledge would disappear now that they were figuring things out.

"more like you get around." Jade mumbled with a small chuckle making the girl in her lap slap her arm softly in warning.

"what about the avengers?" she proposed, trying her best to differ the conversation from him and to something else. "there's six of them so the numbers check out" she continued.

Oliver scrunched his nose, "i don't think any of us want to be hulk"

"or hawkeye" Nia mumbled.

Samantha sighed, "okay. any other ideas?" they had been going at it for a while now and it was starting to annoy everyone in the room. it was just hard, none of them wanted to pick something basic but there weren't that many group costumes, especially with six.

"we could all just wear purge masks" Natalie shrugged making both Samantha and Nia grimace.

"ew that's like super 2019. that is the most boring shit ever" she said shaking her head. Natalie sighed.

"okay then i don't know"

the room fell silent once more as they thought about more ideas. Matthew was on his phone searching for ideas but he seemed to be coming up with the same things over and over.

"what about toy story" Nia said making the raven girl point at her in agreement.

"i can be barbie. she's hot" she said earning a small smile from Jade.

"true." she agreed.

"holy shit," Oliver muttered making them all look at him in confusion. "Matthew and i could be Kens and you girls could be barbie." he proposed with a huge smile. that didn't sound like a bad idea at all, she doubted anyone else would think of doing that. it just surprised her that Oliver was the one to think about that over everyone else. she'd expect that from Nia or maybe even Jade but Oliver? that was something she never saw coming.

"why are you actually kind of a genius" Nia said matching her brothers grin.

"i think i'm more of a raquel though," Jade said, her lips twisted to the side as she was looking at the space in front of her in thought.

"i totally see that" Natalie nodded then gasped as she looked down at her boyfriend in excitement. "we could be Ken and Barbie from the Toy Story movie." she said happily.

Oliver's grin grew wider, "you're a genius babe" he said and the blonde shrugged sheepishly before she leaned down to press a soft kiss on the boys lips.

"i'll be howdy Ken," Matthew said, his lip curling into a smirk.

"valid, valid." Samantha nodded, "i never thought i'd see you in a cowboy costume and honestly i love that for you"

Nia frowned, "but then what would i be? i don't want to be in some horrid 80's work out jumpsuits" she said sadly.

"you could match with me" Matthew offered, his smirk gone and replaced with a small smile that everyone else in the room messed but Nia couldn't.

"yeah, you guys would look great." Natalie said to try and encourage her friend. they really needed to come to a conclusion so they could get the costumes the next morning.

"that just leaves you," Jade said looking down at Samantha.

"i'll be og barbie. you know, with the pink dress? god i'm gonna look so hot" she sighed out a bit dreamily causing them all to laugh.

"i sometimes forget how obsessed you are with yourself," Natalie chuckled.

"whatever, it's called self love." Samantha bit back and threw up her middle finger at everyone in the room.

they all started to talk about what they needed to buy which wasn't much since most of them already had clothes that could go with it. the only person who didn't was Natalie and Oliver because he needed a hawaiian shirt. Samantha figured her dad would have one though she offered to try and look for one for him. Samantha would just wear a pink dress that she already had and wear glittery eyeshadow along with pink heels to really seal the deal.

Samantha didn't feel her phone vibrate any more meaning Georgia hadn't texted her back. she tried not to overthink it, the blonde was probably asleep by now. it's not that she needed to talk to Georgia every minute of the day but the blonde had been a bit distant since the morning and she wondered if she did something wrong. the day that they hooked up Samantha and her stayed up another hour before the blonde grew tired and fell asleep, as soon as she did Samantha snuck out through the balcony. it was thankfully still slightly dark outside, the sun had just began to rise so it wasn't completely light outside. things were fine even the morning after, their dynamic didn't change but she was starting to wonder if the blonde had just now started to regret it, the reality of it all finally sinking in. the thought alone made her stomach hurt.

now that she knew what being with Georgia was like, life before her seemed so boring. nothing compared to the night they shared, the chemistry, the passion and overall it was just so fucking hot and every time she thought about it a light shade of pink would cross her features. her overthinking was cut short by Jade who locked her phone and threw it on the empty spot beside her.

"guess what i heard," she said a small smirk playing at her lips. everyone stopped to look at the girl, each of them just as confused, including Samantha who was looking at her with furrowed brows.

"what?" Oliver chuckled.

Jade looked down at Samantha, "Sophie Sanchez and your sister are talking." she said, her smirk never leaving.

"holy shit, are you for real?" Matthew laughed in slight amazement. Samantha didn't say anything as she waited for Jade to respond to him. there was no way Max was talking to someone - specifically someone she knew and wouldn't tell her. the thought alone hurt her feelings more than she thought it would.

Jade nodded, "yeah. i heard it from Kate. i think she even invited her to some party Brodie's throwing." she laughed and anyone who had common sense knew she was making fun of Max.

the raven haired girl didn't even care to comment on that. all she could think about was the fact that her sister was talking to someone and she didn't bother to loop her in. maybe she was a hypocrite considering she didn't tell the girl about her ex girlfriend but that was different, she couldn't tell Maxine because she knew it would ruin a lot of friendships and she didn't think it was fair for that to happen when all she wanted to do was to be happy. Maxine didn't have that problem, it's not like Samantha would get mad if she talked to Sophie. she just wished she was important enough in Maxs life to have been in the circle. maybe she was a shittier sister than she thought she was.

the girls mood had drastically changed and the only person who seemed to notice was Nia who began to rake her fingers through the girls hair. "you okay?" she asked softly, her eyebrows furrowed in worry.

Samantha shook her head as she tried to form a smile, "yeah." she whispered.

both of them knew she was lying.

the next day the group of friends all rode together to the festival. they had all gotten everything they needed for their costume and there was a while until they needed to get ready so they decided why not go. Natalie Oliver were still parking the car seeing as there wasn't any empty parking spaces so they dropped the four friends off before driving off to try and find a space. as soon as Nia and Jade saw that there was fresh apple cider they each broke away from Matthew and Samantha leaving them on their own. they were each waiting for the two girls near the face painting station where Samantha could clearly see her sister and her friends.

what she had heard yesterday was still fresh in her heart and seeing her sister only made it sting even more. she never thought she would be left in the shadows of her sisters life and yet here she was.

she wasn't the only one overthinking though. Matthew glanced at the shorter girl briefly, his heart was beating faster than usual which he had never felt before. why was he nervous? he only felt like this before games. he sighed, "can i ask you something?" he spoke up breaking Samanthas stare in her sisters direction and directing her sight toward him.

she had an idea of what he would be asking but nodded regardless, "what's up?"

"has Nia told you anything.. about us lately?" he asked a bit hesitantly, he paused to try and get the words out without seeming too n invested.

Samantha shook her head, "about what?" she asked feigning confusion. she didn't want to throw her friends under the bus like that, especially not with the literal guy she was crushing on.

Matthew looked at her with 'seriously' look on his face. "you're her best friend and she hasn't said anything? i don't believe you" he said and crossed his arms against his chest.

the raven girl rolled her eyes, "if you already knew the answer then why'd you ask."

Matthew shrugged, "i want you to be honest."

"she has."

"what did she say?" he quickly responded.

Samantha looked at him with raised brows, not at all used to seeing him this desperate. "just that you guys talked during Sophomore sleepover." she said honestly. they hadn't really spoken since and she assumed it was because they were taking things slow.

Matthew nodded, his face turning so he was looking in front of him and not directly at the shorter girl. "that's it?"

"did you want her to tell me something else?"

he shook his head. "i just.. i know she likes me and all but i don't know if she would want to actually go on a date with me." he said scratching the back of his neck nervously.

Samantha's expression softened, she now understood that it wasn't just one of his usual conquest, he actually care for Nia. "i think she'd say yes"

"really?" he asked his head snapped back toward the girl. she nodded with a gentle smile.

"yeah."

the boy couldn't contain his smile so he turned back around, "okay" he confirmed. neither of them could continue their conversation considering the sole topic of it was walking toward them with a cup in hand. she was laughing at something Jade had said and Samantha didn't miss the way the boys eyes shinned at the sight. she loved them together.

the brunette and Jade approached them, each holding a cup of cider. "want some?" Nia offered Samantha as she held her cup out but Samantha shook her head.

"im good. thanks though." she said earning a smile from the brunette as she went back to talking with Jade.

soon enough Oliver and Natalie were walking toward them hand in hand, once they were caught up with the group they walked around a bit to see what they could do. there were some activities which they participated in which really just means Oliver and Matthew would compete with one another. they spent half an hour carving a pumpkin which both looked equally as bad, none of them had the heart to tell them that though. that thankfully didn't last long since they all went toward the stage when they heard Paul begin to announce who had won the decoration competition. they all knew who the winner was even before so it was really pointless.

Samantha could see Georgia up on the stage, their eyes met for a second, each of them sharing a smile before the blonde turned to talk to her coworker. the six teens were in the crowd, half of them whispering to each other whilst Nia and Matthew were watching Samantha and the blonde exchange small glances.

"bootylicious really takes the whole costume thing seriously." Matthew said with a small smirk knowing the name he called her would annoy her.

he was right, the raven girl rolled her eyes at him. "shut up" she mumbled making both Nia and Matthew glance at one another in amusement. she looked so hopelessly in love and yet couldn't see that herself.

"best window decoration," Paul announced, a small card being pointed at him so he could read off of it. he was wearing a suit that was unbuttoned to reveal a super man costume, he was even wearing a black wig and glasses to complete the look. "goes to.. Liz Chavez" he finished earning an applause from the crowd. they watched as a trophy was brought up to Paul before her gave it away to the winner. "winner of best apple pie," Cynthia which isn't a surprise at all. "to the surprise of no one, goes to Cynthia Fuller." as they all expected. everyone began to clap once more but neither Samantha nor her friends did.

"bitch," Jade muttered under her breath making them all laugh.

"careful, the witch might hear." Matthew quickly whispered before turning back toward the front so they could watch the red head take a picture with the mayor. Samantha saw the small and cold interaction between her and Georgia when she grabbed the trophy from the blondes hand. that made a smile form on her lips, she loved that about Georgia. the camera snapped a quick picture and the redhead pulled away from the mayor and behind him on the stage.

"and now a very exciting announcement from the mayors office. we are going to be renovating the Wellsbury public library." cheers erupted from the crowd once more, even from the six teens who were glad they were finally going to do something different in the town.

not everyone had the same reaction though, Cynthia walked back up toward the front of the stage clearly upset with what she had just heard. "but the library is one of the most historic buildings." she said.

"exactly. this is why it deserves upkeep." Paul nodded. "we're gonna be adding a third floor. we are going—"

he was quickly interrupted by the red head who sounded even more upset, "upkeep? sounds like your plan is to depreciate a beloved landmark." she said in a condescending tone then reached over to snatch the mic causing it to make a slight squeaking sound making everyone cringe.

"fuck." Samantha muttered knowing whatever was going down wouldn't be good.

"what Wellsbury deserves is a mayor with a vested interest in preserving that standards in this town. i mean, first the drugs, now the library. where does it stop?" she said. cameras were snapping pictures repeatedly, each of them wanting the hot new story for the day.

"bitch needs to get laid," Nia joked earnings snickers from the group.

"someone get her a broom so she can fly away." Oliver added making his girlfriend shove him softly, not able to contain her amusement at his words.

"green gardens actually allowed us to have a surplus that far exceeds—"

"i saw Mayor Randolph last night on a date." she interrupted him, talking louder to drown his words out. murmurs erupted in the crowd causing her to nod, "yes. with his assistant" she confessed pointing at the blonde in accusation.

the crowd fell silent at her words just like Samantha felt her stomach drop, her before amused expression replaced with a blank expression. the three oblivious teens began to whisper their surprise whilst Nia and Matthew looked at their friend worriedly. they glanced at one another, each of them trying to have a silent conversation so try and figure out what to do.

Samantha's eyes locked with Georgia who looked nothing short of regretful but she quickly looked away, turning her attention to Paul making that horrible feeling in the pit of her stomach intensify. this was why she had been super distant they day before. she probably couldn't find the balls to tell her that she wanted to end things then. it shouldn't even matter, they aren't even together but that didn't take away the absolute pain she was feeling in her chest. was this what all of her one night stands felt when she didn't talk to them anymore? was this her karma?

she chuckled softly, her head shaking in disbelief. she felt stupid for ever thinking her and Georgia could be anything but a simple fuck.

"let's go." she said dryly, not even turning to look at her friends as she began to walk away from the crowd. not even Cynthia making a skeptical of herself could make her feel better and all she wanted was to get that horrible feeling out of her body and never have to talk to Georgia again. the pettiness of her words didn't matter to her, she didn't care that it had only been two months since they met, or that they only had sex once and that they never agreed to be exclusive. it was the fact that Georgia didn't tell her, the fact that she kept her in the dark and even texted her asking if she would be able to see her after she went to the halloween party because Ginny would be out til late. did she think she could just keep her little date a secret?

no, fuck her.

none of them questioned her as they walked to Oliver's car, at least not until they were actually in it. "why'd we leave? i wanted to get my face painted." Oliver said when he began to pull out of the parking space. his words earned him a slap in the back of his head from his sister who was sitting directly in the seat beside him.

"ouch, what the fuck?" he said his hand rubbing the impact to try and soothe the pain. Nia shot her brother a look through the rear view mirror which cause him to shut up a second later. Samantha wasn't paying attention to Jade and Natalie who looked extremely confused by the whole situation.

thankfully Matthew was the one who solved the problem which meant more to Samantha then she could ever really express. "Sam was having an attack." he lied. well, it wasn't a complete lie, she was having a sort of anxiety attack but it didn't have to do with the crowd around her.

"are you okay?" Jade asked quickly after, she turned her head to look at her friend with worried eyes.

Samantha nodded softly, "i'm good. i just didnt take my meds today." which also wasn't a lie. since she stayed the night at Matthews she didn't have her pills. she was planning on taking them before going to the party since she wasn't planning on drinking, the idea of driving to Georgias house drunk was incredibly irresponsible but that wasn't the case anymore and she was starting to regret it. in fact the only thing that could make her feel better at this point would be blacking out so she didn't have to think about her shitty love life. funny how she went from not having one just a month ago and now it was more complicated than ever.

[maliland]

RESENTMENT: PT. 1

"i gotta look her in her eyes and see she's had half of me." part two

barbie(s): e-42 miles morales & black fem reader includes: flashbacks/backstory stuff, angst, infidelity, homewrecking, & heartbreak (men being disappointments per usual) synopsis: you used to describe your experience with love as one of complexity and simplicity all at once, but after you learn what your boyfriend did at a party with another girl while you were at home and sick, your heart is left with irreparable damage and an abundance of resentment. wc: 2669 banner credz: @/cafekitsune

a/n: first fic on this ho 😓 nervous. idk if i like this so i was procrastinating.. but lmk what y’all think! 🫣 i’ll post a post a poll the end of the fic. if y’all like it then i’ll finish up the second part and post it whenever i get a chance. i haven't proof read, but i'll fix any mistakes when i do.

(nd let me ease your nerves: this is not a fic where miles cheats on reader w/ gwen. she isn’t included in or mentioned in this part or the next 😭)

unfaithfulness might as well be a disease. not one that can be contracted, but one that stems from within. 

those who are unfaithful are unequivocally the weakest links. you? you've always presumed them to be snakes that were to join lucifer on earth at the very beginning of time, because they'd rather cause havoc and jeopardize how those they love perceive them rather than relish eternal peace in the clouds. had adam and eve left the forbidden fruit alone, the one thing that those unfaithful could've stayed faithful to was their identity as whispering serpents. alas, that's not how the story goes. and for the sake of free will, god decided they should reside on earth with those who know nothing but faith. 

betrayal isn't limited to one kind of person. whether the relationship is romantic or platonic, anyone can smile in your face, only to turn around and drive a pre-sharpened knife right through your back when you least expect it. you're left to bleed out while you try and make sense of why it had to be you.

you've been double-crossed before, but never bad enough to the point where you needed to make a huge deal out of it. it was usually stupid stuff, like your elementary friends ratting out your genius hiding spot during hide and seek after they got found, or your mom revoking her promise to take you to the park that one day after school when you were younger. your ex-best friend from middle school spreading nasty rumors about you was far more serious than all the other instances, and it was probably the worst one until now. 

you know that girls and guys alike get cheated on. you've heard stories and even seen it happen firsthand. infidelity occurs more frequently than you initially thought it did. then again, you tried not to think about it much because you were positive it would never happen to you. ever. especially not with your boyfriend, miles.

that was your first mistake—thinking you were immune.

you wanted to gauge your eyes out when your best friend video called you and showed you that photo of miles kissing another girl in a bedroom at a halloween party. 

the girl you were once worried about.

❤︎₊ ⊹

when you were younger, you were in love with the idea of being in love. 

many of your earliest memories consisted of your father reading you fairytales right before bed, since your mother was never around to do so. when he learned that you took a liking to stories that were more centered around love, he began to look for various fairytales pertaining to such that he could read to you. you adored how the love interests would always end up together by the end of each and every story. after enduring all the conflict getting in the way of their relationship thriving, it felt like a reward. you always felt secure knowing a happy ending was guaranteed no matter what transpired throughout the story. you liked that security, but your obsession with it inevitably flawed your perception of love itself. you grew up under the impression that love in the reality in which you reside wouldn't be all that different from the fairytales.

it hurt you when you finally discovered that that wasn't the case. in eighth grade, you had asked your crush to the winter formal. he had harshly rejected you, cracking the most heartless jokes in addition, in attempt to impress his friends, who were indeed laughing up a storm. that encounter alone was enough to ground you to earth. you discovered how disappointing the world and its inhabitants truly were, and how the unrealistic fairytales you once swooned over would never be real life. maybe it was insane of you to ever even think so, given the perilous city you live in.

seeing as dating these days is more detrimental than beneficial, during your sophomore year of high school, you decided that you'd steer clear from being romantically involved in any way, shape, or form entirely. of course, the universe always sends you someone or something you stopped wishing for ages ago when you least expect it. maybe something you didn't even long for anymore at all. you were perfectly okay with sticking to romance novels. you sure didn't want to put your peace on the line, especially not in the name of romance—but someone changed that.

miles.

you knew of his existence before you started dating him, but only briefly. you had an algebra class together your sophomore year, but the boy was quite reserved, only speaking when spoken to. trying to keep to himself and stay out of your school's public eye completely backfired on him, because he became the topic of everyone's conversations multiple times for a full week after his father, the former police captain, passed away. 

officer morales' death was a humbling reminder that brooklyn would only continue to grow more and more minacious. you haven't gone for a walk at night by yourself for as long as you can remember. you'd either be mugged, killed, or both. on the streets of new york, there was peril lurking around every corner. the city has more loose criminals than you were able to count on your fingers. you got used to living in such an environment, but your arm hairs never did stop shooting up whenever you had to step outside.

you recall giving your condolences to miles when he returned to school two weeks later. he had just nodded. you couldn't blame him though. everyone was constantly reminding him of something he'd rather not think about.

if he wasn't reticent and constrained to silence before, he was sure as hell was now. you tried your luck with him anyway, though.

whenever you'd see him sketching in his sketchbook in algebra, you'd compliment his skill or ask him what he was drawing. maybe it seemed a little invasive at the time, but your heart was in the right place. 

"i didn't know you could draw," you whispered to him. your desk was right next to his, so ignoring you wasn't really an option.

"yeah."

"that's cool, art takes skill—and patience," you had smiled.

"mhm."

you fell into a routine of asking miles what he was drawing every day in class. he was undoubtedly annoyed by it at first, but he eventually got used to it, and you finally got more than a one-word response. it was this conversation in particular that changed the way miles saw you.

"is that the prowler's suit you're drawing?" you whispered, surveying the page.

miles nodded and responded flatly. "yeah."

"i think it looks cool. i really like his suit design," you retorted. "especially the purple."

"you do?" he stopped drawing completely and looked up at you.

"hell yeah," you expressed with a faint grin. "he may be a criminal or whatever, but you gotta admit, his suit and his tech are pretty neat."

so then you two were friends for a couple of months. you'd do things like eat dinner at his house, help around the flat, and study together. surprisingly, miles' mom, rio, took a liking to you. she even taught you how to cook, and would let you assist with fixing dinner. 

miles had it was rare for his mama to warm up to people as fast as she did to you, and that made you feel special.

within the period of time in which you and miles would hang out, you ended up catching feelings for him, which you pushed to the side without a second thought. you still firmly believed that a relationship would bring you nothing but trouble. what you didn't know was that miles felt the same way about you as you did him, and eventually, he decided that he couldn't hide his feelings for you anymore.

miles confessed to you one night under the water tower on the roof of his apartment complex. you'd been watching the sun go down together and talking about whatever came to mind. you could've gazed into his perfectly sculpted face until the end of time. you doted on the way his eyes glowed gold when the sun hit them just right.

"you helped me open up. i didn't think that was something i was capable of doing anymore," he had told you. "i really do like you, [name]."

though you were terrified of putting yourself in a position to be played, you didn't want to say no, so you didn't. 

for the two years you've been with miles, you've never not trusted him. he's never given you a reason not to. he's always treated you like royalty, practically kneeling at your feet like being in your presence was a reward all by itself—at least that's what you felt like being his girlfriend equated to. 

it's no secret that miles tends to capture the attention of numerous girls without ever even having to try, whether they went to your school or simply passed him by on the street. miles didn't even have to lift a finger to have them drooling.

when you two got together, you didn't announce your relationship to the public like you were some kind of celebrity couple. that didn't stop people from gossiping like you were, though. according to everyone who went to visions, "miles and [name] popped out with each other out of nowhere!" and that was okay with you. nobody needed to know the ins and outs of you two's relationship. unfortunately, the obvious fact that you and miles were together didn't stop girls from constantly trying to have their way with him—one girl in particular was more persistent than the rest.

you'd be lying through your teeth if you said it didn't bother you at first, because it made you sick to your stomach. the thought of miles leaving you for one of those girls was one you couldn't bear. 

you vividly recall standing beside miles while he was situating his books in his locker before a girl who was well-known around campus, arielle, approached your boyfriend on the opposite side and 'not-so-subtly' flirted with him like you weren't even there. it was no secret that she didn't like you, so you were stuck between trying to figure out if she actually liked miles or was just trying to get under your skin. all you knew was the way she was twirling her perfectly spiraled, bouncy, brown curls around her index while she bit her lip bottom had you undeniably heated. 

"so miles, i've been learning how to braid hair," she had said. "honestly, i think i've pretty much mastered it. i want to practice cornrows... problem is, i couldn't find anyone with the type of hair i prefer to practice on, but then i saw you!"

you had to turn around and face the opposite direction just to hide the distaste that hastily painted your once-neutral expression. you brought your arm to your mouth and coughed twice so it wouldn't look like you were turning around for no reason. when you turned back around, arielle was looking you dead in the eyes, like you had done something horrible to her. you were surprised that she decided to give you even a fraction of her attention instead of acting like you were a ghost altogether.

you returned the energy, narrowing your eyes to slits. you weren't going to go toe to toe with another girl over a boy who was clearly yours. you had just redone miles' hair not even three full days ago, so she'd had to find another guy to practice on.

you shifted your gaze onto miles as he closed his locker. he hadn't even said a word to arielle up to that point, or even looked at her. when he finally made eye contact with the girl, she smiled innocently, as if she wasn't trying to murder you by burning holes through your skull with the way she was staring at you. 

you were no longer bothered by the time miles turned his head to look at you. the way his face was twisted was more than telling, with confusion written all over it. you read that boy like a book. 

"i mean, come on," arielle giggled. "you'd be the perfect person to practice on."

this girl didn't know when to stop. you were silently growing furious, wishing miles would take your hand and drag you away from that foolishness, but no. instead, he chose to engage in conversation with arielle.

"what do you think of my hair now?" miles asked.

this made your stomach drop, but it didn't show on your face. instead of saying anything or trying to figure out why miles cared what this random ass girl thought, you stood still where you were, waiting for the worst to be over. at the time, you and miles had only been together for about five and a half months. you didn't expect your first relationship to end that quickly. if this conversation didn't wrap up soon, you were sure that your head would start spinning and you'd pass out on the spot.

"of course! the two braids always look so good on you. i love them," arielle angled her head and leaned against the locker next to miles'.

"so do i," miles smirked, snaking one of his arms around your upper back to the shoulder furthest away from him. he pressed his palm against your arm and gently urged you closer to him, pointing to you with his free hand then looking back at arielle. "my girl got me right the other day, and she did a damn good job."

a smile crept up onto your face. for only half of a second, you didn't want to come off like one of those annoying moms of five who got the last 75" flat-screen tv during black friday and rubbed it in everyone's faces in the checkout line, until you remembered who's boyfriend miles was.

yours.

you had bragging rights.

"thanks, miles," you looked up at him, smiling brightly as any and all doubts left your mind. your eyes soon met with arielle's again, who was in disbelief. it seemed that you'd exchanged expressions. you were the one geeking now. 

"damn, i'd say gossip doesn't spread like it used to, but the looks you were giving me tell me you know we're together and don't care."

arielle shifted her weight off of the locker, crossing her arms and rolling her eyes. she was never one to admit, let alone accept defeat.

"girl, c'mon. don't be lame. miles wouldn't cheat on me. it's even crazier that you thought he'd flirt back while i was standing right here."

"have it your way, but he's gonna crack."

with that, arielle scoffed, opting to leave the situation alone for the day. that wouldn't be the last time she tried something like that, and it probably wasn't the first either. you just happened to be around to see it that time. it made you wonder how miles reacted every other time. you were also quick to question why she claimed miles would "crack." it rubbed you the wrong way.

"she's jus' talkin' outta her ass, hermosa. she likes attention," miles assured you.

for whatever reason, that response alone didn't satisfy you. you had an uneasy feeling in your stomach for the rest of the day. you remember calling miles that same night while you both did homework. in the midst of the comfortable silence that had settled, you decided to bring up how you felt about what had happened.

"i won't lie, earlier today, i was a little scared," you admitted.

"of what?"

"i thought you were gonna ditch me for arielle," you replied, letting out a deep sigh at the same time.

"i'd never," miles promised you. "te amo, chica. and only you. i'm with you for a reason."

"i love you, too," you grinned, genuinely feeling at ease. "i was just paranoid. i know now that you'd never do that to me."

the invasive thoughts that often crowded your mind and kept you up late at night; the ones listing each and every reason why your relationship with miles would crash and burn? they haven't bothered you since then.

©maybemymali

[roosterforme]

A Love You Don't Find Everyday Part 15 | Rooster x Reader

Summary: You hated nothing more than watching Bradley leave for a deployment. But at least this time you knew that as soon as he returned, you would be sliding wedding bands on each other's fingers. 

Warnings: Smut, angst, fluff, and swearing

Length: 4000 words

Pairing: Bradley "Rooster" Bradshaw x Female Reader

Check out my masterlist for more!

The night before his flight to South Korea, Bradley couldn't shake you for a single minute. You seemed to want him everywhere with you, even to the extent that you asked him to help you cook Marry Me Rooster for dinner.

"Can you turn the oven on?" you asked him as you started to get the chicken ready. "And mix all of the spices up for me?" 

Bradley did as you asked, and then he kissed the back of your neck. "I need to make sure I packed a phone charger," he said, lying so he could get away from you.

"You're coming right back?" you asked, and Bradley melted a little bit inside.

"Yep," he promised before dashing to the bedroom. 

He knelt down on the floor and reached under the bed, pulling out a small box and the paper airplane he had already folded up. He knew he would only have a minute to get everything in order. He opened your nightstand and tucked the paper airplane inside with the box under it. Bradley wished he could have given you the gift in person, but this way you would see that he absolutely intended to fulfill his promise to you.

"Roo?" you called from the kitchen, and he could feel his heart skip a beat for you. He didn't want to leave your side for very long right now, either. 

"Coming, Baby Girl!" 

-------------------------

You were an absolute wreck. It had been getting worse since the Halloween party. And now that Bradley was leaving in the morning, you couldn't stop thinking about his injury from his last deployment. 

So you were perched on his lap at the dining room table while he ate a huge portion of Marry Me Rooster. "This is so good," he groaned, looking at you like the savior of mankind was sitting on his lap, all because you knew how to follow an old recipe. He held out the fork for you to take a bite of chicken, but you just shook your head.

"I'm not hungry."

He set the fork down and wiped his mouth with a napkin. "Are you worried about me missing the wedding?"

You shook your head. "No, Bradley. I'm worried about your safety. We can get married whenever." Your voice sounded small and your throat felt tight. 

"I will come back to you over and over again, Baby Girl. Nothing can keep me away."

"I know," you said, and you knew you were going to cry if you didn't get it under control. "I just keep thinking about how you came home last time, and I don't want anything like that to ever happen to you again."

Bradley held you against his chest and let you get your breathing under control. "I will be as careful as I possibly can be. Besides, Jake won't let anything happen to me, because it would upset you."

You started laughing at the truth of that statement. "You're probably right." 

You managed to take a few bites of dinner, but when Bradley tried to clean the kitchen you wouldn't let him.

"I will have plenty of time to clean the house while you're away. I need to get everything ready for my parents to stay with us anyway."

"Oh, hell no. They are not staying here this time," Bradley said, picking you up and carrying you to the couch. He dropped you gently onto your back and climbed on top, rubbing his mustache all over your face and neck.

You laughed and tried to make him stop as you asked, "Oh really? Where do you suggest I tell them to go, then?"

He pinned your hands above your head and nipped at your lips. "I'll get them a room at a five star hotel, but they are not staying here. Especially not on our wedding night."

"Oh," you gasped and then giggled. "I see your point. They did kind of cramp our style last time they stayed here."

"Mmm," he hummed next to your ear. "You are not good at being quiet for Daddy."

You licked your lips. "What? I'm always good for Daddy."

"You're a known brat, Baby Girl. And I fucking love you."

You let him gather you up into his arms and hold you. "Fine," you whispered. "You win. They can stay at a hotel."

"I knew you'd see it my way."

----------------------

Bradley stretched out on the couch with his head in your lap while you played with his hair. His arm dangled lazily over the cushion, and he pet Tramp who was curled up on the floor. 

"It's getting late, Baby Girl," he whispered, not wanting to move, but knowing you would need sleep for work tomorrow after you dropped him and Jake at the airport. "Let's go to bed so you're not tired."

"No, let's stay up longer," you countered. "I can sleep when you're away. Nobody will be constantly prodding me with their penis and wanting my attention for at least a week, if not two."

Bradley looked up at your smirking face. "Yeah, that better not be happening."

"We can go get in bed, Roo, but I'm not ready for sleep yet," you told him softly, turning off the TV and letting him give you a piggyback ride to your bedroom. You had your arms wrapped around him, and your lips were teasing his neck, and Bradley was starting to wonder exactly how many times he was going to have to leave you for deployments. 

He set you down on the side of the bed and turned to stand between your legs. You looked tired and worried in the soft lamp light, but still so perfect to him. 

"This is number four on the year. But really my fifth deployment with you."

You nodded, swallowing hard and you slowly moved to the middle of the bed and reached for him. "I hate them," you whispered as he crawled over to you. "But I love you."

Bradley kissed you, pressing you into the bed with his body weight. Your fingers were in his hair again, holding him to you until you moaned. "I'm going to miss you, Roo."

He pushed your shirt up and eased his hand along your bare breasts, watching your face change to a look of longing. "Next time I see you, Baby Girl, we'll be in the final days before the wedding."

"Please," you begged, pulling your shirt over your head. "Please make it back in time."

Bradley didn't say anything else, his lips too busy tasting all of you, until his face was buried in your pussy. 

"Please, please," you begged softly between gasps, and Bradley was no longer sure what you were begging him for. So he gave you everything. He made you cum on his tongue until you were pulling his hair and pleading with him louder. 

Then he made love to you, his cock buried deep inside until he was filling you up. He cradled your face in his hands and jerked in and out, cumming with your name on his lips.

When he kissed you, you simply whispered, "Please, Bradley. Just come home."

-------------------------

Bradley watched you swiping tears out of your eyes as you got dressed in his old UVA tee shirt and some leggings. You were wearing your glasses and watching him dress in jeans and a black tee for his long flight. 

"Come here," he said, and you shuffled into his arms, breathing him in with your face buried against his chest. "I love you. I'll be home soon. I'll call you if I can."

You nodded against him. "We need to leave," you whispered, your voice shaking. "So we have time to pick up Jake."

"Let's go, Sweetheart." 

You held his hand as he drank a mug of coffee and picked up Tramp for a kiss. You squeezed his hand as he hoisted his duffle bag onto his shoulder. 

"Your car or the Bronco?" he asked once you were leading him down the front steps.

You snorted. "Jake won't fit in my backseat with the bags," you said, leading him toward the Bronco. "But I can't believe you'd have willingly gone in my car, Roo."

"I would do anything for you," you said, tossing his bag into the back and closing the hatch. "Including paying for repairs to that shitty little death trap and riding around in it with you."

Bradley buckled you into the passenger seat, and kissed your nose before hopping in the driver's side and pulling out of the driveway. 

The ride was quiet. You didn't select a playlist, and he hadn't asked you to. You simply laced your fingers with his and occasionally kissed his hand. 

Even Jake joined the two of you with barely a word, but Bradley watched him squeeze your shoulder as he climbed in the back with his duffle. And then the three of you were on the highway, zipping along to a destination he didn't really want to reach. 

But by the time he was pulling up to the curb in front of the International Departures sign, he knew you would be crying when he looked at you. He could simply tell by the way your hand shook in his as he shifted into park and killed the engine.

"Baby Girl," he rasped, and you were already crawling across the seat and into his arms. 

"I love you," you sobbed quietly as your tears met his face where you pressed yourself against him. "Just come back home. Please." He held you so tight, his eyes closed against his own tears as you kissed him all over his face.

Bradley heard Jake open the door and climb out onto the curb, thankful he was giving the two of you some privacy. 

"As soon as I get back, we're getting married, Baby Girl. We'll have our super secret perfect wedding, and then I'll be your husband forever. And you'll be my wife." 

You were smiling and crying at the same time, and it was somehow impossibly beautiful. He straightened out your glasses, and you rested your forehead against his.

"It's going to be perfect," you said. "I can't wait to marry you."

Bradley mashed his lips to yours for a few seconds, memorizing the softness of your skin and the way you smelled. Then he scooped you up and climbed out of his door with you in his arms while Jake grabbed both bags.

When Bradley set you down on the sidewalk, he watched you fling your arms around Jake's neck and bury your face in his shoulder. "You need to come back safely. And you need to bring him with you, okay? Promise."

"I promise, Angel," Jake said, holding you against him. "You call the boys or Nat if you need anything."

"I will," you squeaked, and Bradley watched you place a sweet kiss on Jake's cheek, one that had the other man squeezing his eyes shut. 

And then Bradley knew, whether he liked it or not, he was absolutely stuck with Jake Seresin in his life forever now. Because for some reason you loved him. 

A second later, you were back in Bradley's arms again, your hands grabbing his chest and shoulders while you kissed him a little frantically. He pulled back a bit, taking your face between both hands and saying, "When you get home, check your drawer."

A laugh bubbled out of you. "Okay, Roo. And when you get on your flight, check your phone for some pictures that I'm going to text to you."

"I will, Baby Girl. I love you. More than anything." He kissed you one more time, holding every inch of your body against his before letting you go with his car keys in your hand along with his entire heart.

---------------------

You stood on the sidewalk amidst all of the horns honking and people walking around until you could no longer see Bradley and Jake inside the airport. Then you climbed into the Bronco and pulled slowly into traffic, making your way home to get changed for your half day of work. 

"I'm sorry, but it's just me," you told Tramp when he ran around in circles looking for Bradley. "Daddy will be back in seven to ten business days."

You started to think about what would happen if he missed your wedding date. You'd lose out on a bunch of deposit money for the food, pink champagne and confetti cake you already ordered. But you didn't care about that as much as you did about Bradley and Jake both getting home safely. 

"Oh my god," you gasped, running out of the kitchen and heading for your nightstand. You yanked the drawer open to find another paper airplane and a small jewelry box. He had written Baby Girl on the paper plane, and it looked so much like his tattoo, you squealed as you opened it up. 

Next time I write a note for you, it'll be my wedding vows.

"Bradley!" you screeched into the empty room as you sprawled out on the floor, kicking your feet up into the air. You and he would hopefully be sharing your wedding vows later this month, and you couldn't wait. You carefully folded the paper up so you could add it to his other deployment notes you had stashed away. 

Then you opened the jewelry box to reveal another charm for your necklace. It was a flat, gold disc. But when you pulled it out and flipped it over, your lips parted as you stared at it. 

It was engraved with your wedding date. Twenty three days from now. Bradley had twenty three days to get home and make the date on this charm a reality. You held it in your hand for a moment, rubbing your thumb along the smooth edge before gently placing it back in the box. You didn't think you should add this charm to the other two until he was home. 

You checked the time on your phone and got ready to send him the pictures you had taken the other day while he was in the garage working out. He and Jake were probably boarding their flight now, so you sent the photos you had painstakingly posed for. And then you changed into your uniform for work, trying not to drown in the lonely feeling that seemed to absorb you when Bradley was away.

----------------------------

Bradley had his phone in his hand, ready to scan his electronic boarding pass for the airline gate agent. He should have been paying closer attention, but he and Jake were sipping gross airport coffee and chatting about some of the scant mission details they knew when you texted him.

Bradley was pretty sure both the gate agent and Jake got a good look at your tattoo and your hand covering your pussy as the image flashed on his screen. But when he and Jake strolled down the jetway a moment later, Jake just cleared his throat.

"You know, you can change your phone settings so images stay hidden until you actually open the text," he drawled casually. "I think you should look into that. For all our sake."

"That's good to know," Bradley replied, feeling his cheeks growing warm. You had sent a few more photos, but he was too afraid to take his phone back out of his pocket right now. 

"The two of you are so disgustingly in love, I can't even be mad about it," Jake said, leading the way toward the seats that had been assigned next to each other. Bradley took the window seat and Jake took the aisle seat in the exit row, and they both got settled in. 

"Still can't believe she picked me," Bradley mumbled, finally pulling his phone out. 

Jake snorted. "Nobody can."

Bradley checked his surroundings and turned the screen away from Jake before opening up the first image. 

Yep, it was your tattoo with your left hand and your engagement ring, fingers covering your pussy. The second one was a selfie you must have taken in the shower with soapy tits and a smug grin. And the third one was another of your tattoo with both wedding bands balancing next to it on your hip.

Next time you're home, we'll be sliding these on each other's fingers.

"So, when's the wedding date?" Jake asked casually, stretching his legs out in front of him, and jarring Bradley from his thoughts of you in bed.

"Uh," he cleared his throat, "not sure yet. Still working on that."

Jake rolled his eyes. "Both of you are terrible liars. Angel keeps fibbing to me about it. It's cute that she thinks she's crafty."

Bradley scrambled quickly. "We might just go to Vegas next month. Keep it simple."

"There's no way Angel is going to agree to getting married in Vegas in that dress she bought. I'm not buying it," Jake insisted, crossing his arms over his chest while they started to taxi for takeoff.

Bradley quickly texted you back a million heart emojis and told you he loved you and the photos you sent him. Then he put his phone into airplane mode. 

"Wait, you saw the dress?" Bradley asked, even more annoyed now. "How did you see the dress?"

Jake shrugged. "She was showing Nat and Maria pictures on Halloween, and I sweet talked my way into the conversation."

Bradley was quiet for a beat. "What does it look like?"

"Like something you wouldn't wear to Las Vegas for a quickie wedding. So just tell me what you're doing."

Bradley's heart was pounding. He needed some way to throw Jake off. "We're going to Mexico right before Christmas. Eloping there."

Jake just hummed, and Bradley wasn't sure if he sold it or not. But there was no way he was going to give up the real wedding date. You would be so angry if he did.

"Well," Jake replied as the plane took to the air, headed out over the Pacific Ocean. "Looks like I'll be spending the next two weeks planning your bachelor and bachelorette parties. We can have them right when we get back."

Bradley settled back against the seat and closed his eyes, a little afraid of what he had just done. 

-------------------------

At work on Thursday afternoon, your boss informed you that there would be someone from Annapolis interviewing for a spot in your lab the following day. And all you could think about was the last time when you ended up working with Josh for several months. So Friday morning, you dressed and got yourself ready for work, but you made sure you were extra cautious when you sat down at the conference table to meet with this candidate.

"Here's her resume and work history," Bickel told you, handing you a folder. You opened it up and skimmed through the credentials for Lieutenant Catherine Coleman. She was close to your age, originally from Philadelphia, and she had a degree from the Naval Academy in electrical engineering. 

"Why does she want to come to Top Gun?" you wondered out loud. "She's in a prestigious lab at the academy."

"We're about to find out," Bickel said with a shrug, and he stood and left the room, returning a few minutes later with a very determined looking woman. She was petite with dark brown hair and striking features. The way she carried herself reminded you a bit of Phoenix, and you were instantly in awe of her. 

After introductions were made, all of her responses to your questions were quick and thorough. She was impressing you. But you still weren't sold on her. "Lieutenant, why do you want to transfer to North Island? You're in the lab I would want to work in if I were in Annapolis. And your Admirals get massive budgets to work with. Much bigger than ours."

She looked intently at you, studying you for a moment. "The lab is overcrowded, and I like to stand out. I'm also looking to settle somewhere outside of Maryland."

Well, you couldn't argue with that. You also liked to stand out, and leaving Maryland permanently was perhaps one of your greatest achievements. 

"And what would you have to offer us that we don't already have?" you asked, and Bickel leaned forward to hear her answer. 

"A fresh perspective."

-------------------------

As Bradley settled into his bunk on the USS Ronald Reagan after a day of mission prep, he got his phone ready for his allotted twenty minutes of shitty wifi access. Jake was on the bed five feet away about to do the same as it became 1900 hours ship time. They both frantically entered the internet credentials and waited for their phones to load.

"Who are you hoping wrote to you?" Bradley asked, and then he felt kind of like a dick for asking. It just seemed odd to him that Jake was single and not constantly trying to bring girls back to the bunk; that's what Bradley would have been doing before. 

Jake just snorted. "Probably your wife," he drawled. "She always writes to me when I'm away. And maybe Nat or my parents."

Bradley opened up a series of emails from you, scrolling through what you'd been doing at home. You'd sent him a photo of Tramp at the beach and another of you dressed up for a night at the Hard Deck. He saved them both to look at later.

We interviewed someone from Annapolis, and they are going to transfer out next month if they accept the position. 

He was instantly on high alert. Could be another Josh situation.

Don't worry, I'm not working too hard. Only twenty hours per day.

He sincerely hoped you were joking. There was a chance you were not.

Are you still planning on coming to our wedding? Any idea when you'll be back?

He would be flying this mission tomorrow afternoon. It was just him and Jake. They kept changing the parameters, eliminating team members, making it more specialized. Bradley was a little alarmed that they weren't going to be provided with more firepower and backup support, but what did he know? He was only a Lieutenant Commander in a room full of Admirals. 

So he replied to your emails, promising to call you when he could, and sparing you the details of the mission. And then he and Jake both groaned at the same time when the internet cut out. 

"Your wife asked me what she should get you as a wedding gift," Jake drawled as he turned his phone off. 

Was Bradley supposed to get you something? He hadn't even thought about it. He had quite a credit card bill to pay off at the moment, between the honeymoon and all the lingerie you charged to his credit card. "What did you tell her?"

Jake tucked his hands behind his head and stared at the low ceiling. "I told her all men want the same things in life, so she should make you a nice dinner and give you a blowjob. You're welcome."

"That's like a typical Tuesday for me," Bradley replied with a grin. "And Thursday. And Sunday."

"Must be nice," Jake said, his voice a little tense. "Someone who loves you that much and gives you head for no reason? Damn, Bradshaw."

Bradley just closed his eyes and thought about you. "Living the dream. Wait, are you jealous?"

"Of you and Angel? Nah. Probably just need to get laid."

"Just say the word and I'll go to the lounge for a while," Bradley replied. "I don't mind."

"Maybe tomorrow," Jake drawled without enthusiasm.

"Tomorrow's the mission," Bradley replied. 

"Well then maybe a different day."

Bradley just grunted in acknowledgement.

---------------------------

And he's off! Next up is his mission! And I hope he gets back in time! Also, peep Cat Coleman....she's going to be important....

PART 16

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[nothomegal]

“The little owl family” (Part 3)

(RZ!Michael Myers x GNReader)

Summary: your and your little sister’s life had an 180° turn when your parents got into a severe car crash, dying on the spot. You, being already past 18 had to figure out how to keep things afloat and give yourself, specially your sister, a good future. And you did! It was hard but you did it and became the absolute hero in the little girl’s eyes. People would often involuntary smile at the dynamic of your two, so wholesome and supportive, the perfect family bond.Bond that a certain Boogeyman noticed as well…

Warnings: typical mentions of murder, Mikey being obsessive and violent.

Word Count: 4k. (Sorry for so much text- )

Additional info: Gender Neutral reader. (S/N) = sister’s name.

(Part 1) (Part 2) (Part 4) (Part 5) (Part 6)

Both siblings have returned home after making a visit to the plice station. (Y/N) was a bit moody but mostly relieved that the police finally listened. They already visited the station, the day after finding the dinosaur drawing, but of course everyone thought they were crazy for freaking out over a scrible, saying that maybe some teens saw them around the Myers house and decided to prank them. They had non of it yet couldn't do much, the only advice the cop gave them was to close the doors and keep the inside of the house private.

Now however, when the police heard (S/N)'s testimony that's when they took it more serious. Sure, the probability of it being some dumbass dressing up to be funny was there, yet it worth checking just in case, specially when knowing that the real Michael Myers kidnapped his sister. And who knows, maybe he'll do the same but with some random child...

—"(Y/N)..."—

(S/N)'s gentle voice shut all overwhelming thoughts inside (Y/N)'s mind. They slowly put the knife next to the cooking board and look at their sister.

—"What is it songbird? Still scared?"—

The girl fidgets with her fingers a bit while staring on the tiled kitchen floor. Eventually she sighs and her arms drop.

—"I'm sorry..."—

(Y/N) blinks a couple of times, confused with their sudden apology.

—"Sorry? For what?"— you ask, genuinely confused.

—"For starting all this mess... I think Terry is right, I'm just a scaredy cat that overreacted."— she says, her expression guilty.

Their eyes widened slightly, they walk over to their sister and kneel in front of her.

—"You did nothing wrong sweetheart, you actually did the right thing! The police is there to help, to protect us."— you say softly as you cup her cheek. —"And you better get ready because tomorrow I'll say Terry some not-so-nice things to that goblin so he leaves you alone."—

—"It's... It's not about Terry anymore, it's about you (Y/N)."— she lowers her gaze even more. —"I- I don't like how much you have to worry now, and it's all because of me! If-... If I just stayed quiet, if I didn't ask to see that dumb old house we would be okay and happy, and we would be able to celebrate Halloween!... I ruined it all I- "—

Before (S/N) could continue with her rant, her sibling wraps their arms around her form tightly, holding her close in silence for a few seconds.

—"I said you did nothing wrong. This situation could've happe to anyone, and we got the unluky number. I know you're worried about me and I admit that I may not be at my best state, but it will pass eventually and everything will be right again."— you lean back a bit, your gaze warm. —"We just need to hold on a bit, until the police catches that scary man. I'm sure it will be soon."—

(S/N), more calm, nods as she wipes the little tears that were threatning to slide down her cheeks.

—"Was that man Michael Myers?... Is he the Boogeyman?..."—

(Y/N)'s body goes stiff as they think what to answer. They haven't told their sister about the stranger's identity, not wanting to scare her even further but it seems like (S/N) started to figure out the whole situation by herself.

—"I-... I don't know."— you sigh, but she doesn't seem convinced. —"Myers is supposed to be in the asylum and- "—

—"He escaped... Did he?"— she glances at you.

After a little pause, their sibling nods, their expression a bit sad, even ashamed for trying to keep her oblivious. But the girl had no anger or resentment in her eyes, but a desire to know.

—"What did he do so everyone are so scared of him?..."—

—"I'm... I'm not sure you want to know that... Long story short; very scary and bad things."—

—"What things? Please tell me (Y/N)! I promise I won't get scared!"— she begs you in a childish tone.

(Y/N) remains quiet, thinking. Eventually they sigh and stand up.

—"You better take a sit, I'll go get you a poptart."— you simply say.

The girl gets a little spine chill, both excited and worried about what her sibling is about to tell her. Ones the girl took her sit on the dining table and was munching the sweet treat, (Y/N) starts speaking while resuming their cooking.

—"Last year, a few days before Halloween, all grown up Michael Myers escaped. He killed people while doing it, and not in a pretty way..."—

(S/N) freezes mid bite.

—"K-Killed?..."—

—"Yes... Killed. One of the victims was one of his caretakers, a sweet old man that was there since he was a kid..."—

(Y/N) could see how physically uncomfortable their sister got, even if the details of how he killed him weren't mentioned. They began to feel bad for the little girl and were ready to stop the 'story telling', but the girl proved to be tougher than expected.

—"And what happened after he escaped?..."—

—"He... He tracked his little sister, that is now a teen. He murdered her adoptive parents, a friend and then kiddnapped her, nearly killing her as well in the process. The sister survived though, and Michael Myers supposedly died when she shot him, but as we can see he didn't..."—

The little girl listens quietly, taking in the information and shrinking on her sit every second, the munched poptart still untouched in her shaky hands.

—"Is he... Is he coming to kills us?"— she finally asks.

There are a few seconds of silence, until (Y/N) breaks it, their tone loud, strict, cold... Yet burning with anger and determination.

—"I won't allow it."— and you meant it. —"If he dares to come, I will break every single limb of his. He's not touching you while I'm still breathing."—

Such tone took (S/N) off guard, she never saw her sibling be so cold and serious about anything.

—"But... But what if he hurts you?..."—

—"He won't. Mom and dad won't allow him."— you reply with a softer tone and then turn towards her. —"Even if they're not here, they still taking care of us. We'll be okay, songbird. I promise."— you smile.

The girl remains silent, observing their expression to see if they're just pretending, but (Y/N)'s look and words seemed genuine. She eventually smiles back with a toothy grin.

—"You're right! Bet the ghost of mom and dad are going to haunt him if he dares to come!"—

—"Oh they definetely will! Dad was scary but angry mom was even scarier!"—

And the dull atmosphere from before vanished in a blink of an eye, the siblings talking about random topic which would make them either laugh or argue. The tunes coming out from the speaker only made their afternoon even better, singing or even dancing, anything to keep the dark thoughts away.

But of course, they weren't enjoying it alone. The dark presence was outside, hiding in the shadows. Even though he couldn't see (Y/N) through the windows anymore, due to the curtains they strictly maintained closed, their tone alone was enough to make him feel the same adrenaline spike, his chest heavy with some sort of excitement. The way their cold voice managed to penetrate and shake every single bone and muscle inside of him was an indescribable feeling, yet so, so adicting. They knew who he is, the atrocities he commited and how much of a threat he is, yet they made it clear how many fucks they give about it, only worrying about the safety of the little one.

And now... Now that the atmosphere inside of the house changed, so did his mood. The way they both laughed, chanted, danced... Every single interaction between these two radiated with warmth, warmth strong enough to keep the crude outside world away from their little happy home.

From their little happy family...

Happy family...

He should be envious of them, he should be mad at them for having what he could never have, she should try to destroy it, to destroy the both of them so he stops feeling bad...!

But... He doesn't. He doesn't feel bad at all, none of these negative and destructive feelings are haunting him, not ones. It's the oposite, he actually feels warmth whenever he observes them, some alien coziness that unknowingly to him would make his body relax and gaze soft. He's not sure why he feels like this, but he can't deny the fact that if feels good... Peaceful, he feels at peace for ones in his wretched life.

He should be content with that, with what he has it should be enough, it should... But he knows that his mind will crave for more...

And it's only a matter of time before he loses control.

. . .

October 28th.

The last couple of days been pretty uneventful, the 'Boogeyman' wasn't mentioned anymore and didn't appear ones, even the owl family resumed their carefree lifestyle and were already teaching their babies to fly!

But unfortunately, tonight the siblings couldn't observe the birds due to a hard storm outside. Rain, wind, thunder, you named it all.

(S/N) was in (Y/N)'s room, she was quite scared of thunders so of course she would ask to sleep with their sibling who, unlike the young one, was probably having the best sleep of their life.

The bed was quite wide so they both fit without any issue, each one with their own blanket.

At some point though, a particulary loud thunder resonated, which made (S/N) cuddle closed to (Y/N). The mentioned sibling woke up due the loud sound but thought nothing of it, ready to close their eyes and go back to sleep.

But suddenly, an alarming feeling striked in their gut. Something felt wrong, is the air colder? Heavier? Is their heartbeat too loud? Is the house too silent? It's hard to tell what exactply isn't right, but they know something is.

They suddenly sit up, their eyes wide and staring at the door. The little girl felt the sudden movement and also sit up, though her form sleepy and confused.

—"Uh?... What's wrong?"— she mumbles before yawning.

—"...I don't know."— you reply, still staring at the door.

The girl blinks a couple of times and also looks at the door. They both remain in this position completely still, barely breathing, until a very faint thud resonated somewhere downstairs. Sure, the noise could mean whatever, but the sense of dread inside of (Y/N) only increased, demanding them to take actions.

—"{Songbird.}"— you whisper, your tone urgent. —"{I want you to tiptoe towards the closet and hide in there, do not come out until I say so.}"—

—"{B-But- }"—

She has no time to ask questions because (Y/N) had stand up and was already searching under their bed for something. They eventually find what they've been looking for, a hunting rifle.

They then look up and glance at their sister, who was completely frozen on the bed with a horrified expression.

—"{Just go hide, please. And if things get ugly...}"— you pause, glancing at the door briefly. —"{Then run away, run towards our next house neighbors and ask them to call the police, okay?"}—

—"{But (Y/N)!... Y-You-...}"—

They nudge her side gently, silently telling her to stop talking and hide. With a huge effort the girl manages to make her body move again and as quietly as she could she made her way towards the closet, hiding her form inside and gently closing the door.

(Y/N) remained in place, near the bed with the rifle already pointing at the door. For solid five minutes absolutely nothing happened, the wind kept howling, the rain pouring and the thunders striking, but nothing else, there were no more odd sounds inside the hou-

Footsteps, the unmistakable sound of footsteps resonated from the stairs. Whoever was walking was doing it slowly, casually even, as if they owned the place. (Y/N) kept their posture, pre aiming at the door and simply waiting, if the intruder is bold enough to enter into their room they'll shoot without thinking twice. Sure, the idea of killing another human is scary and definetely puts their mind even more on edge, but it's either their and (S/N)'s or the intruder's life.

The footsteps eventually stop right in front of the door. There are another good few minutes of silence but it's suddenly interrupted by a loud and bright thunder, which illuminated the whole room and the hall. And right there, through the door crack, they saw an unmistakable shadow of a human.

With no time to waste and with enough evidence that there is an intruder, (Y/N) pulls the trigger.

BANG!

A faint line of smoke is coming out the rifle, but there was no thud or screams of pain at the other side of the door, nothing.

They remain in position for a while but after not hearing anything, or seeing through the tiny hole they just made, (Y/N) slowly lowers the gun, questioning if there even was someone or it's actually their unhealthy paranoia getting the best of them.

They got their answer when the door practically flew off it's hanles and a giant dark mass charged at them. They try to aim and shoot again but the intruder is way faster and manages to grab the end of the rifle and tilt it up the moment (Y/N) pulls the trigger again, making them shoot at the ceiling.

They both struggle, (Y/N) desperately trying to get the gun free but the intruder is way too strong, he's also big, which makes it nearly impossible to push away.

Realizing that things are actually about to get ugly, they shout.

—"(S/N)! RUN!"—

The closet door swings open and the little girl sprints out the room, quietly crying and extremely scared. The massive stranger stopped for a brief moment when he heard the girl, it was just a moment of stillness that ended up with him practically ripping off the rifle out of (Y/N)'s grasp and throwing it agains the wall with great force.

The next thing they know is that the intruder managed to get to their neck. Ones has a firm hold of it, he stands up to his full height and slams their body against the wall, knocking out any oxygen left in their lungs. It didn't stop (Y/N) from struggling though, doing their best to land a kick on his stomack or the lower (and more painful) parts, yet their attempts were cut short when the stranger began to squeeze their neck with both hands, making their struggles weaker.

Eventually, the lack of oxygen began to affect (Y/N) and their arms drop and their body goes numb. Only when they nearly fainted, is when the stranger lose his grip, not enough to let go but enough to let them breathe as they're kept in place.

Durning this little moment of calm another thunder striked and illuminated the room, allowing them to see the emotionless face of the stranger, staring right into their sould.

—"{Myers...}"— you mouth breathlessly.

A sudden little thud followed by a rubber squeak got their attention. (Y/N)'s eyes wide and fill with terror when they see (S/N) standing in the doorway with a little pile of toys in one arm.

—"Leave them alone! You ugly monster!"—

She exclaims as she throws another toy into Michael's broad back, the toy making little to no harm. The man merely glances over his shoulder, his gaze now focused on her little frame.

—"You're mad at us because we visited your home, are you?! (Y/N) did absolutelly nothing wrong, we went there because of me! I am the guilty one! You should've punish me instead!"—

She exclaims again, tears sliding down her cheeks like rivers yet she didn't care. The girl stood high and threw another toy.

—"Or you want to take them away?! I know you have a little sister too, I- "— she hiccups a bit. —"I can be your new little sister! Please take me! Punish me! B-But please! Please leave (Y/N) alone!"—

The girl ends up desperately sobbing, both scared of the man in front of her and the fact that her sibling may disappear forever. Michael slowly turns towards her as he lets go of (Y/N), their body falling into the floor as they gasp for air.

The man starts to slowly and menacingly walk towards (S/N). The girl suddenly realized the mess she just got herself into as she starts to back away, throwing the rest of her toys at the man in a desperate attempt to slow him down, but all they did is bounce off his body into the floor.

—"W-Wait! Ne-Never mind! I- I ch-changed my mind! I don't want t-to go anywhere!"— she lets out a squeak when her back hit the wall in the hall.

The massive man gets even closer, his shadow making the already dark house even darker, darkness that threatens to engulf anything and never let go. The girl lets out a terrified cry as she shields herself with her hands.

—"(Y/N)!"—

The desperate cry of their name made them regain their conscience quickly, they see Michael Myers being just two feets away from their sister, blocking any escape with his broad figure as he extends his hand towards the little girl. Oh god he's about to strangle her just like he attempted with them!

(S/N) is in danger.

They must save her.

No matter what.

But what both siblings failed to see, was the way Michael moved his arm towards the little girl. His movements where slow and smooth, no aggression reflected in them.

When he was about to brush his finger agains (S/N)'s arm, a spartan-like war cry resonated behind him and something cold was wrapped around his neck. (Y/N) tugs the thick wire back rougly, causing the behemoth to stumble backwards, leaving enough room for (S/N) to escape.

—"RUN GODDAMNIT!"— you yell.

And this time (S/N) listens, sprinting through the stairs as fast as her body allows, leaving the house and not return.

The struggle between Michael and (Y/N) continued, they held tightly into the wire, trying to squeaze it even more while Michael attempted to get them off his back. The man eventually gets the solution and slams his body, back first, agains the wall, but (Y/N) doesn't give up. He repeats this maneuver a couple of times until their grip is lose enough to peel them off him and throw them into the floor.

The fall didn't go well, (Y/N) ended up going face first into the floor, but whatever pain they felt is quickly overshadowed by the adrenaline rushing through their veins. They know they won't be able to kill this monster, they know they're going to die, they know they have no chance, they know... But they refuse to go down so easily.

Durning the struggle, it seems like the man dropped his weapon, which (Y/N) had already grabbed as they stand up again. They hold the knife tightly as they stare into the man’s eyes, blood was leaking through their nose down their chin like a river. And despite this, despite all of these disadvantages, they stand hight and ready to keep fighting.

The killer must think they’re insane for even daring to get back to their feet, that they’re delusional for attempting to fight back… But (Y/N) does not care, not when their most loved one is in danger.

Michael remains completely still, looking at (Y/N)’s form. The moment their eyes made contact again, the same spine chill jolted through his body. The feeling was electrifying, so adictive, it began to intoxicate his mind, his eyes half lidded and breath heavy. He shouldn't be like this, (Y/N)'s eyes should not cause his body to react like that, but he can't help it...

Their eyes... There was no fear on them, only cold rage, a burning determination to protect and fight back. This gaze could be compared to the one of a wild wolf protecting an injured member of their pack.

The sacrifice they were ready to make in order to protect their sister caused Michael to feel a bit of respect towards them... Maybe even admiration, no, obsession. He was obsessed with their eyes, with their voice, with them... He was obsessed with (Y/N).

They both remains still, but eventually, and to their misfortune, Michael makes a move. He charges at them but (Y/N) seemed to learn from their previous mistake as they step aside and make a clear slash on his shoulder, causing the man release a low groan.

They attempt to stab him on the neck but Michael quickly grabs their wrist mid attack and tightly squeezes it, to the point that he felt something pop inside and right after that the knife was released from their grasp. But (Y/N) still refused to give up, this time they attepts to land a hit on his face or grab his mask, attempt that was cut short when Michael pushed them into the floor and practically tackled them.

(Y/N) glares daggers at him, their gaze hateful.

—"Don't you get it you sick fuck?!"— you exclaim, voice full of anger.

Michael only tilts his head, action that only pisses (Y/N) off.

—"I am not stopping, I won't stop fighting, not when my sister is in danger! Not while I'm still breathing!"—

And after these words they start struggling under Michael's large body, as the man himself got entranced with them again. Their bloodied visage looked so beautiful to him for some reason, their eyes filled with hate, not only towards him, but towards everything in the world made his breath shake. If it was any other victim he would be frustrated with such behavior... But not with (Y/N), never with them.

At some point, their struggles began to morph into quiet sobs, desperate and disappointed. They were disappointed with themselves, their helplessness and their inability to protect (S/N), not from this monster. They failed her...

They look away and bite their lip, holding their cries as best as possible, not wanting this beast to see them cry, to give him the joy watching them slowly break. This new picture of (Y/N) caused something inside of Michael's chest squeeze painfully, this new broken and vulnerable (Y/N) was very different from the previous one. It may not cause him the same thrill, but in ignites a new emotion, something he though he lost very, very long ago...

Protectiveness.

The same one he felt when he saw Angel cry, when she cowered away from him before he tried to reveal himself... And even after she tried to escape, he still felt protective of her in his own way... And now he feels it towards (Y/N).

Michael's head then straightens as he began to lean down, closer to them. (Y/N) tries to use their last bits of strength to push him away, slow him down, anything to keep him away from killing them in that same instant. When they feel his large arms wrap around their form, they shut their eyes tightly, expecting to feel pain at any second as he breaks their body limb by limb... But that doesn't happen.

They keep their eyes closed for a solid minute, and when still nothing happen, they open them just to be greeted by Michael's large form holding them in a tight embrace. His body warm despite his clothes being wet, the heat slightly soothing any pain in (Y/N)'s body, but not their mind. Being this close they can feel how powerful and strong Michael's body is, even embraced they can barely move, he could easily break their spine at any moment with enough force if he wanted to...

But (Y/N) had no time to question it or had any strength to push him since the adrenaline started to worn off and their vision and senses to slowly black out.

They're not sure how long Michael held them, but eventually he let go and stood up as the plice sirens got closer. He throws one last glance at (Y/N)'s nearly unconscious form before grabbing his knife and walking away.

But, it wasn't the last time they will see him...

Because the monster inside of him will force him to return…

[seenoversundown]

For Death Or Glory: Chapter Seventeen

Jake Kiszka x Charlotte (Fem OC)

Warnings: 18+ Smut (I’ll sneak the sexy warnings in at the end so you can look away if you want) Mild Anxiety if you squint, drinking/alcohol, discussion including sex references, gentle brotherly bullying, a lot of pointing and laughing at Jake (lovingly), Pirates Of The Caribbean references, Tall Tales from our Short King, Fluff, wholesome family time, silly banter amongst the boys.

*smut warnings*: sexual language, praise kink insinuation 😏, fingering, use of captain/daddy (it’s mild) thigh riding, Jake is sexy as hell, everyone.

Word Count: 5.1k 🤭

Summary: It’s Trivia Night! Charlotte decides to hang out with everyone for the night and gets to hear plenty about our favorite little pirate man.

Author's Note: ITS A FAMILY EPISODE 🥰 This was honestly way too fun to write 😂 I hope you enjoy getting to hang out with everyone because it was fun finding ways for them to interact with my main girl, Charlotte. 💕

(I listened to Bed Chem and Juno by Sabrina a lot also while writing parts of this chapter so do with that what you will! 🤭😘)

Nonsense - Sabrina Carpenter "I'll be honest, Lookin' at you got me thinkin' nonsense, Cartwheels in my stomach when you walk in."

It took some mild convincing from Quinn and Jacob, but I’ve decided to participate in Trivia Night with everyone. Not going to act like I'm not a little nervous to hang out with everybody again since the only time I saw them all together was at Halloween, and I was drowning my nerves with whatever drink ended up in my hand.  

“You’re already friends with Quinn, and I’m sure the ladies love you,” Jake quietly tried to pep talk me as I sat in my usual seat at the bar. 

“No, I know,” I sigh. “It’s more the boys that make me nervous.” 

“They’re just louder than me,” he laughs. “They’ll be nice to you though, don’t even worry about them.” 

I take a deep breath as I look at him. 

“I’ll spit in their drinks if they’re mean to you; how’s that sound?” His eyebrow raised as he said it, and I couldn’t help the laugh that fell out of me. 

“You’re ridiculous.”

“And you’re not clocked in, so,” he says with a dumb little smile on his lips. 

“Oooo Lottie, you’re hereeee!” Quinn yells as they step foot into the bar. The rest of them slowly trickled in behind them.  

They wrap their arms around me, practically swaying the barstool with them. “Come sit with us?” Okay, okay, okay. I nod and follow behind them. 

Once the booth has been claimed, the boys apparently wander off to grab drinks and queue up songs on the jukebox. 

“Since the boys aren’t here for a minute— have you two.. y’know?” Quinn asks with a dramatic wink, and I can feel the blood rushing to my face. They already know you’ve kissed him; what’s the harm?

My hand covers my mouth, trying to hide the smile growing while I nod. I practically received a standing ovation at the confirmation. 

“You have to tell us how it went because we’ve never really even seen any girl that he’s even been on a date with! Let alone actually sleep with,” Willa says, leaning into her hand with a shit-eating grin plastered on her face. 

“Oh, um, well,” I hesitate, not really knowing what to say. This was easier with Cass because we just didn’t have a filter with each other, and I’m still not sure what is too much with them. 

Quinn can definitely sense the panic so they cave and ask, “Does he know what he’s doing?” 

“YEAH,” my eyes go wide. “He’s probably more deceiving than you’d think.” My eyebrows practically touch my hairline at the thought. 

A collective giggle from the table made me laugh. 

Mel whispers, “Did he make you–”

“Three times in one night.” 

“JAKE, YOU DOG,” she whisper-screams back to me. 

Willa and Quinn just look at each other before Willa finally lets out, “.. must run in the family.”

“What runs in the family?” Sam asks, handing Willa her drink. Danny is next to him, handing Mel’s drink over to her, and then takes off to get trivia night going. 

Mel’s eyebrows shoot up as she lets a quiet “Being a little bitch,” slip out before she sips on her drink; the smirk on her face is undeniable.

“Oh, fuck off,” Sam laughs, sitting in the booth next to Willa. 

Josh isn’t far behind him, holding three drinks. Setting them down, but quickly handing Quinn’s over to them and then sliding one over to me.

He leans down to me, whispering, “I was given the task of bringing your beverage from a secret admirer of sorts.” My stomach filled with butterflies at his comment. 

“Hey! This is the family table, no secrets!” Sam pipes up. 

Josh whips his head over, “I was just politely asking if I may squeeze in next to my little lovebug over there; otherwise, I will take the shortcut!” He steps his foot onto the edge of the table, making everyone panic for a moment. I quickly slide out of the booth while Mel and Quinn trade spots to make it easier. 

Danny starts explaining the basics of trivia night to everyone; hearing his voice like that was so odd because he’s been so quiet around me; it’s almost like I hadn’t heard him speak before. 

“Tonight’s theme is Pirates of the Caribbean! “ His enthusiasm is rapidly met with a collective groan from everyone. I glance over at Jake, who is just beaming over the theme—of course, he’s excited. 

A few patrons, including Linda, hollered, ‘Not fair!’ 

“Hey now,” Danny chimes back in, “Before everyone gets too mad, Jake will be bartending as his handicap for tonight’s trivia!”

Everyone I’m sitting with is pointing and laughing at Jake as he dramatically pouts behind the bar. I can’t take my eyes off him as he finally breaks the sad face, laughing with someone sitting in front of him at the bar. It’s adorable how much he loves his job. His eyes meet mine, making my heart stop for a second, as he smiles and shoots me a little wink before turning to grab another drink for someone. 

“We’ll start with an easy one- a warm-up, if you will. Which movie was the infamous mermaid scene in?”

The fourth one.

“Charlotte, has Jake told you about the first time he got drunk?” Sam asks, already laughing at the question. 

My eyebrows raise, and I glance over at him behind the bar. “He has not, and I’m fully ready to hear it.”

“Oh, it’s a treat– TRUST,” Willa chimes in. 

Sam and Josh whisper between themselves before turning back to me, “Okay, so Daniel was actually at the house with me because it was a weekend, obviously.” 

Oh, he’s locked in, I’m ready.

“We were what, like thirteen or fourteen at the time, right Daniel?” 

“Something like that,” Danny quickly answers. 

“Anyway- so we’re just playing video games, as teenage boys do, and then Josh knocks on the door.” Sam looks to Josh, who is always ready to take over a story. 

He leaned forward, looking over at Jake and then back at me. “This guy over here decided that he would just drink anything that was handed to him at this party. Lo and behold, he ended up walking like  a baby deer by the time we got home.” He barks out a laugh, “He ended up eating shit in the front yard because he swore he didn’t need my help.” 

It was my turn to laugh, looking over to Jake, who was bright red at this point; he must have had to sit through this story often because he was taking it like a champ.

“Oh, and it gets worse,” Danny chimes in. 

“Yes! So, I ran inside quietly and grabbed these two,” Josh points at Sam and Dan, “To try and help me get the drunk out of the yard before our parents woke up.”

“But even with all three of us, we couldn’t get him stable enough to walk into the house carefully.” 

“You guys don’t have to tell everybody this story, you know?” Jake shouts from behind the bar. 

“Oh, but we do!” Josh rebuttals.

“After a few minutes of trying to get him up, we realized it was a lost cause and went and got our dad for help.” 

“Oh my god, no,” slips out of me before I can stop it. 

Making them all laugh because they know what’s coming next. 

“Well, our dad surprisingly didn’t get that mad,” Sam starts, “But he did insist on taking pictures before carrying him inside.” 

“Mom added them to a scrapbook!” Josh adds. 

My hand flies up to cover my mouth as I laugh at the thought of drunk teenage Jake passing out in the yard. My self-control ran low when I finally let out, “Please tell me she would send you the picture right now; I need to see it.” 

“Oh dear, I thought you’d never ask!” Josh laughs, pulling out his phone. “While we wait for the glorious photo, may I offer you another silly Jake story?” 

“You really don’t have to,” Jake says, setting down a tray of new drinks for the table. “Feels a little unfair; you’re airing out my dirty laundry, and I can’t even defend myself.”

“But, Lottie needs to be caught up on the Jake Lore!” Quinn pipes up, making the whole table laugh. His head drops back when everybody laughs, but his smile creeps through as he tries to scowl at them. 

“Can you at least throw in one redeeming one?” 

“Yeah, yeah, we’ll see, kid.” 

‘What is Will Turner wearing when he’s rescued?’ 

Oh.. the pirate medallion that Elizabeth takes. 

“Look who came to say ‘Hi’ for a few minutes!” Mel announces as she approaches the table with her daughter. I’ve never seen a group of people get so excited over a child. I watch as everybody takes turns hugging her. Josh definitely took the most time, spending time talking with her. They are the most precious little buddies.

She’s sitting on Quinn’s lap when I see her eyes light up as Jake comes over to the table. She quickly stands up in the booth, pointing to him with a big cheesy smile. Jake reaches out, stealing her away from Quinn, and despite the fact she probably couldn’t hear him, he lets out a, “Come here, sweetheart.” 

Why is that sexy? My hands start to sweat a little as I watch him hold her; he has her propped up with one of his arms. He brushes the hair away from her face as she just beams at him. Oh my god? 

“I’ll get you,” he mouths to her before tickling her little neck and then her belly. I can’t stop myself from noticing how big his hands look right now, as his palm seemingly takes up half of her tiny body. Her laughter fills the air as he plays with her for a minute. I don’t think I’ll be able to get this out of my head now. Why.. How is he so good with kids? 

She wraps her arms around his neck in a hug, his hand rubbing her back as Mel walks back up. 

“Oh, how sweet,” she says, “She was asking if you would be here tonight, Jake.” 

“She hasn’t figured out I live here yet, huh?” he jokes, looking at her and smiling so big at her. I’m not even in a relationship with this man; why is this so–

His voice pulls me out of my head, “Char, do you want another drink?” Hearing him call me by a nickname catches me off guard. He hands Iris over to Danny as I’m nodding at him, and he steals my glass from me. 

“Oh, perfect timing!” Josh boasts, sliding his phone across the table. “The requested photo.” The way I picked it up could have been at record speed. 

And what a feast for the eyes it was; there lies a baby version of Jacob, absolutely obliterated in the grass. 

“You can swipe for another good one,” Josh pipes up, his cackle quickly following.

Hesitantly swiping to the next one, it’s of him thrown over his dad’s shoulder with Sam cheesing next to him. Jake’s eyes are shut, and his hair is all over the place, but the way you can tell in the photo alone that he has just given up is hilarious. It’s cute that his family didn’t yell at him for it, and if this was the worst punishment he got, he was pretty lucky. 

“Oh god,” Jake’s voice suddenly next to me again. “Not my best moment, clearly.” I laugh quietly as I look up at him, his face softening a bit when he looks back at me. 

“Didn’t pin you as a sloppy kind of drunk, Jacob,” I tease. 

His smile grows quickly, “He’s a different breed– I don’t like to let him out very often.” Oh, I need to see him a little drunk at some point. 

‘What is Jack’s last line in Dead Man’s Chest?’

Jake leans down, his mouth hovering over my ear before saying, “Hello, beastie,” in his finest Jack Sparrow accent. The sound of his laugh graced my ears as he stood back up. Not entirely proud of how the English accent affects me, but he doesn’t need to know that.  

“Oh!” Josh pipes up, “Jacob, remember when you planned that one date in high school?” 

“Haha, oh boy, I have a bar to tend to, unfortunately,” his eyes wide as he walks off to escape this story. 

“So what about this date?” I lean into my hand, looking over at Josh. 

“It was really very cute,” he starts. “He asked this girl out, and she actually said yes. So, he spent like a week and a half planning out this date-” 

A collective ‘awww’ coming from the rest of us. 

“Well, she never showed up. He was devastated. Our poor Jake has been getting ghosted since the beginning of time.” 

How does he have such bad luck with girls? 

“He did get stood up— what was it like three months ago?” Willa asks, looking at Sam. He nods mid-sip of his beer. “Poor guy moped around for a week.” 

“It’s honestly baffling; he really is such a sweetheart,” Quinn adds, with Josh nodding along with them. 

“How come Quinn can say that and it’s okay, but I tell him he’s handsome ONE TIME—,” Willa starts, her face back towards Sam. 

“Wrong– you’ve said it twice,” he corrects her with a smug look on his face. 

She rolls her eyes, “Sam, be so serious right now,”

“YEAH, that’s right, I’m keeping track!” his voice raises for a second but immediately drops when he says, “Plus, you’re MY very beautiful and hot girlfriend, we don’t need to give him any ideas.” He side-eyes Jake while he wraps his arms around her shoulders tightly.

“He’s not going to try and steal Willa from you, Samantha,” Quinn giggles, watching him hold her hostage.  ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

After finally being able to get away from the storytime table, I hustle to the bathroom: two drinks plus  Josh’s storytelling skills, a recipe for disaster. 

“Oh, excuse me,” I back away from the bathroom door as an older lady walks out. 

She stops in front of me for a second, her eyes lighting up, “Well, it’s about time I run into you.” 

“Um..” I hesitate. 

“I’m Eleanor,” she grabs my hand gently, “Or El, whichever the boys feel like that day.” The realization of who she is hits me; this is the one Willa said Jake was going to marry. 

“Oh! Hi, I’m Charlotte,” I shake her hand lightly, “I’ve heard about you, nice to officially meet you.” 

Her smile is contagious, “What a pretty name for such a beautiful girl.” 

“Oh, you’re too sweet.” 

“It’s nice seeing him so happy, you know?” She starts, “I’m not trying to tell all his secrets, but the poor boy has just had no luck the last few years. Constantly being let down by all these girls— which is such a shame because he’s such a charming young man.” 

My heart hurts hearing her say that. Why would girls not like him? 

“Oh really? I didn’t realize it had been that bad.” 

“Yeah, the poor thing had basically given up on dating. He really just invested himself into being here, which is admirable of him, but between you and me,” she leans in, “Linda and I are so glad that you’re getting him out of here a little. He needs it.” 

“He really is something special,” I admit to her, “It’s a loss for all the girls who didn’t give him enough of a chance.” 

“You said it!” she giggles; it seems her voice is just quiet by nature. “If I were younger, I’d be trying to take him home with me.” Her little wink made me laugh. 

“I’m not one to kiss and tell,” I whisper, leaning closer to her, “But you’d be making the right choice.” She giggles with me this time. 

“Well, let me not hold you up any longer! I’ll see you out there,” she squeezes my forearm gently as she turns to walk away.  ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

As I’m walking out of the bathroom, I catch him coming from the back room and promptly make myself in his way. 

“Hey you,” he whispers. 

“Hi,” I say quietly back, “What are the odds I can steal you away?” Letting my hand run down his forearm, he subtly grabs it while he listens.  

“For work or..” his voice trails off, and that damn eyebrow of his popping up. 

Shaking my head, “Mmm.. definitely not work.” I pull my bottom lip in with my teeth as I look at him. 

“Ohhh, I see,” his shitty little smirk coming out. 

“So, is that a yes?” 

He looks down the hall past me, “I don’t know about that, Red.”

“We could just sneak upstairs real quick,” I don’t even care how desperate I sound at this point because I am a little desperate. 

“The bar’s kinda busy, I don’t–” 

I quickly cut him off, “What about your office?”

“Someone’s eager?” His eyebrows pull together for a second as he looks me up and down. 

Hooking my finger into his belt loop, tugging him toward me, “Baby, please,” batting my eyelashes at him.

“What’s gotten into you?” his laugh lacing the question.

“Just seeing you with Iris, I don't know..” trailing off, I lean forward into him, my hand holding the side of his face, “I just think you’d make a cute daddy.”

 Pink creeps into his cheeks rapidly before he spits out, “I’ll meet you in my office in five minutes.” ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

He backs me into his desk, slotting his leg between mine. He leans against me, letting his weight press into me. 

“Jake, please,” I moan as he leans even further into me, making my hips grind against his thigh. 

“Needy little thing,” he whispers as I moan into his mouth, still trying to resist riding his thigh. He glances down for a second as my hips betray me, “Does that feel good?” 

My face warms up, and a small “mhm” escapes me. The smirk on his face makes my stomach turn, nervous about whatever is going on inside his head. He leans in, the kiss feels more heated than before. His teeth lightly grabbed my lip, which sent a little shiver through my body and caused my hips to start moving a bit more forcefully. 

“Keep going,” he whispers against my lips, “use me, honey.” 

“Fuck me,” falls out of me, the friction making my head spin. 

He quietly laughs, “You’d like that, wouldn’t you?” 

God, he needs to never stop talking. 

His lips leave kisses down my neck, finding every sensitive spot he can get to. I’m doing everything in my power to refrain from moaning too loudly, but he’s making it increasingly more difficult. The waves of pleasure shooting through me every time I roll my hips are only made worse by the feeling of his smile against my throat. 

“Jake–,” I whine. “Touch me.” I slide my hand down the back of his arm, trying to pull it from behind me. 

“Oh, you need my hands?” He teases me, whispering a breath away from my ear. “Is that what you want?”  He unbuttons my pants but hesitates to do anything else. The amount that I want, need rather, him to just touch me, is bordering painful.

“Baby, please,” I moan into his ear, “You’re just so good at it.” His hand immediately slid into my pants at the praise, running his fingers across my panties that are practically drenched at this point. 

“All that for me?” He coos into my ear, sliding the soaked fabric to the side; his fingers gently rubbing against my throbbing clit, causing a louder moan to slip out. “Gotta stay quiet for me, honey. Unless you want everyone to know how good I make you feel.” 

His voice was killing me as he added pressure with his fingers; the build of my orgasm was quick once he got involved. His hand slides down as he hooks his middle finger into me. Letting his palm rest against my clit as his finger pumps into me, the friction was just enough to keep inching me closer. 

“I’m so close,” I quietly whimper. 

He leans in closer to my face, hovering just above my lips, “Let me have it, honey.” He slid his ring finger into me as he said it and then leaned in to kiss me as his hand moved faster. I can feel the orgasm about to snap inside me when he lets his tongue gently dance across my lip. My jaw falls open as my release finally hits; I can feel the wetness against his hand as he works me through it. As I come down from it, his hand slows with me. 

He carefully pulled his hand back, grabbed my jaw with the other, and pressed one slow kiss into me. He lingers close to me for a second and, with his cheeky little smirk, asks, “Feel better?”

I giggle against his lips, kissing him a few more times before deciding to add fuel to the fire, “For now.”

“For now?” 

“Oh, Jacob,” I tease, sliding my arms around his neck. “I’ll be ready to actually ride you later.”

His eyes light up at my comment, “You may be the greatest friend I’ve ever had; I hope you know that.” 

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

I managed to slide back into the booth with minimal questioning, though I think Josh knew what had happened with the way his eyes were burning a hole into the side of my head for a moment. 

“Oh, I did think of something wholesome for Charlotte,” Sam announces to the table. 

“He’s not here,” Josh reminds him, “You don’t have to suck up to him.” 

Sam’s laugh makes me laugh when he comes out with, “No, I know, but don’t we want them to get toge—“ 

“What were you going to say, babes?” Willa, wide-eyed, cuts him off before he finishes his sentence. Wait- do the boys want us to..? 

“I was just thinking that- he’s always been the one we go to,” he says, his tone feels different. “Like, with anything. He’s typically the first one I’ll think to call if I need actual help with something.” 

“No, that’s so true, actually,” Quinn chimes in. “He will do so much for the people he cares about. The amount of times he’s texted me to let me know that he left the door unlocked for me or that he bought more of the coffee creamer I like since I was at their place all the time anyway.”

Danny was lingering near us while they all talked about the exuberant amount of nice things Jake had done for them. 

“He got me the job at the shipyard and then basically created a job for me here; I feel like that speaks volumes about who he is as a person,” Danny says quietly. 

I look over as he’s at the opposite end of the bar; his smile is so wide. He must be talking to Linda and Eleanor– always taking time to talk to everyone while they sit there, but for those two specifically, he really makes sure to dote on them a little extra. 

The table falls quiet, well- quiet is subjective, and I take my chance to ask the question that I’ve definitely been sitting on. 

“Is there a reason for the Bob Seger cut out?” I ask. “Actually- there’s just a lot of Bob Seger that happens here? Because I’ve been here near closing time, and Night Moves, I think..has been on every time.” 

Everyone looked at each other; it was almost comical the way they all paused when I asked. 

“Jake!” Josh hollers, “Your presence is needed!” I watch him move through the room, slowly moving through people to get to us. “Someone is asking questions that..you should be here for.”

“Okay, shoot.” 

I look up at him, “What’s with all the Bob Seger?”

“Oh!” His eyes darted over to Josh. “Haha, well–.”

Willa chimes in, “Oh, this should be good.” 

“It started with Night Moves and, uh,” He pauses, looking down at the table for a second. 

Josh quickly chimes in, “Mind’s slipping away from you?” 

His head whipped up to look at Josh, “No no, just want to make sure I recall it correctly!” 

“Well,” Sam pipes up, “we got ALL night.”

Danny bumps into him, whispering something in his ear. 

“Ah! Yes, thank you, Dan,” he says, patting Danny’s arm as he walks off. “Have you heard the lore of the Old Port Pirate?”

“Obviously not,” I giggle. 

Sam pipes up quickly, “Really!?” 

“Oh! Charlotte, you’re in for a treat,” Mel says, leaning into her hand, ready to hear this story. 

“Josh, do you mind watching the bar for a minute while I explain this?” 

“Oh, but of course!” He quips back.  “I do love this story, so I’ll be lingering over here!”

I let Josh out of the booth, with Jake sliding in next to me as I sat back down. He turns to face me a little with a smirk on his face. 

“So, there’s this man who wanders around the Old Port, typically found sitting in front of one of the stores nearby. We’ve been told that he thinks he’s a pirate, so..that’s where the name comes from,” he chuckles at himself.  “Well, he wandered in here the day we opened, and obviously, from one pirate to another, I wasn’t about to send him on his way.” And a precious little pirate you are, Jacob. 

“Of course not! Pirates are always welcome in a tavern!” Quinn chimes in. 

“Exactly– I’m glad you understand,” he says. “While he was here, he barely spoke. Just kept to himself the entire night until Night Moves started playing.”

I glance around the table; Sam, Willa, and Mel are all fully invested in this. Wait..

He excitedly continues his story time, “He waved me down and proceeded to tell me about how Night Moves was his favorite song. Said that he actually knew Bob at one point– which I’m not going to tell him that I don’t buy it because.. well, if you saw the guy, you’d understand.”

“So you just…play it every day?” Why do I kind of believe him?

“Well, we never know when he’s going to come back or if he will,” he tells me. “But I want to make sure he feels welcome!” 

Willa asks, “Didn’t he pay with a doubloon?” 

“He did! That’s why it’s framed over there!” Josh hollers from behind the bar. 

“Oh,” I try to collect my thoughts. “Well, um—”

“I know it’s a pretty exhilarating story- take your time to process it,” he says, double-tapping the table. “I do need to go take the bar back from Josh, so if you have any more questions, you know where to find me.” His hand gently squeezes my arm before he scurries back to the bar. 

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

“Alright, be honest,” I say as he walks over to me. “Is this pirate man real?” 

“Of course, he is,” he says, no hesitation in his voice. “Do you want more to drink?” I nod as I’m trying to figure out if he’s lying. 

I let out a small, “Mmmm..” folding my arms over my chest as I watched him make a fresh drink for me. 

He slides it over to me, “Have I lied to you before, honey?” 

The way I want to kiss- I mean, smack the smirk off his face. My arms drop, and I can’t fight the smile on my face any longer, “Alright, I’ll believe you.” 

He leans forward onto the bar, resting his head in his hand, “While you’re here.. you should stay with me tonight.”

“Mmm.. I don’t know if I should,” I tease him.

He blinks slowly at me, a little smirk on his lips, “What if I promise to make you breakfast?” 

“Well.. that does sound nice but..” trying to sound dramatic, but let’s be honest- there’s no way he wouldn’t win this battle. 

“Josh is going to Quinn’s,” he pauses and lowers his voice “.. we can have sex.” His eyebrows shoot up, making me giggle. 

“Now we’re talking, Captain.” I lean forward into my hand now; we probably look ridiculous right now. 

“What was the other name you called me?” He winks at me, pulling his bottom lip in with his teeth. 

“Oh, you liked that, huh?” 

“Might need to try it out later and see,” he says, giggling to himself. It’s cute how excited he gets over little things like that. I wave him closer, and he leans a little further. I stand on the little supports of the barstool to meet him in the middle. 

I whisper into his ear, “Whatever you want, daddy.” 

His jaw goes slack, as he stares at me, slowly shaking his head while that devious little smile of his grows on his face. I just raise one of my eyebrows at him, waiting for the truth to come out. 

“If you keep talking like that,” his voice trails off. 

I can’t stop myself from asking, “What about it?”

“I’ll be making sure you let the neighbors know.” 

I gasp before I can even think, “Jacob!” 

“Yeah, it’ll sound kinda like that,” he says; the smug look on his face as he backs away is killing me. 

I know my face has to be red at this rate; I let out a fairly loud “Um!” Glancing around at the people near us, including his brothers. 

“They didn’t hear, don’t worry,” he laughs; I hate how sexy he is sometimes. “I only want you to hear me anyway.”

Oh, this man is on one tonight. 

“Charlotte!” Willa yells from across the room, distracting me from him. Thank god.  ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

Spending the rest of the night laughing and hanging out with everyone. Jacob still managed to school everyone on his Pirates of the Caribbean knowledge, not that anybody was shocked. It was nice getting to just spend time with people, even if it was a lot of them having to fill me in on the backstories of most conversations. They were so welcoming to me. 

And amid another Josh story, I hear the sweetest sound faintly over the chatter in the bar and even cutting through Josh’s voice; the opening chords of Night Moves started to play. I glance over to Jacob, whose eyes are locked on me, and something about his stare makes my heart flutter. 

‘Workin’ on our night moves—“

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Eighteen

FDOG Master Post | Masterlist | Playlist

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[puffyducks]

DCRC Week #6

It's time to read PKNA #3: Day of the Cold Sun! Yippee woohoo yahoo this is a good one!!! Also the last one that got printed in English :(

Genuinely what the fuck is he wearing here. How to look inconspicuous step 1: dress in bright neon green. Step 2: wear some kind of weird top hat jester combo??? A top hat with little dangly bells on it??? Like yeah Raider SHOULD be arrested just for putting this fit together. I don't know who your tailor is but I suggest you sue.

Camera 9 finally gets the recognition he deserves, he's been carrying this entire series as far as I'm concerned. Way to go little dude!

NNOOOOOOOOOOOOOO NEVERMIND 💀 I HATE IT HERE

I love angry fucked up robo strength Lyla, defend him he's done nothing wrong!!! EVEN THO YOU WIPED HIS FUCKING FOOTAGE-

TWO ANGUS FANGUS????? MY NIGHTMARES ARE COMING TRUE

Did he just pull up at her apartment window 😭 He knows where she lives????

clucklehead.... I'm really gonna miss these goofy ass insults from the official translation

cop moment 💀💀💀

Raider I'm literally begging you to ditch Fangus in the neolithic period, you'd be doing us all a huge favor

oh. that's PROBABLY not good- Also somebody please buy Donald some brown contacts I'm literally begging

2017? I thought it was the 90s... actually you know what ELSE takes place in 2017? Have you heard of Disney's Duckta-

Fuck... she saw through our master plan of stuffing Donald in a duffel bag and putting on a Spirit Halloween mask

I have no idea who this reporter is but she ate and left no crumbs. kinda gagged tbh

The way Camera 9 is just watching from the corner 😭

AND CAMERA 9 STAY WINNING BITCH 💯 THAT'S WHAT IT'S ALL ABOUT

I think this chapter is excellent, my only complaint is that it has quite a few twists and turns and can be kinda confusing on first read. I had a GREAT time reading through it again though, it's an incredibly interesting story. I do feel bad for Lyla about being kept in the dark by the time police, who were gonna fucking SCRAP HER which is just mean. Also shoutout to the Raider for going to time jail AGAIN, I'm sure he'll definitely stay locked up this time guys! He's not going anywhere I promise!!!

This is also my open letter to IDW to please please continue printing these comics in English. The people weren't ready in 2016 but they're ready now, I swear. I'll buy 10,000 copies if I have to. We can start a campaign you guys, I believe in the power of me and the like 20 other American PK fans on here. WE HAVE TO AT LEAST GET THEM TO PRINT THE NEXT ISSUE MAN IT'S LITERALLY ONE OF MY FAVORITES-

Anyways, see you guys next week when we read Earthquake which I'll be super normal about. Buhbye!

[canirove]

In The Name of Love | Chapter 32

Auhor's note: Two things. 1: Only three chapters (two + epilogue) left! 😱 And 2... I'm sorry 🫣

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Masterlist

"I don't know who has eaten more candy, me or the kids" Emma says.

"I think it's a draw" I chuckle.

"You could have also eaten some, you know? Some sugar will do you good, cheer you up."

"I'm fine, Emma."

"No, you aren't. You don't need any make up to look dead, you've been leaving in a constant Halloween for the past weeks."

"Wow, thank you" I laugh.

"Val, I'm sorry if it sounds mean, but I'm worried about you. Are you sure you are ok?"

"I'm fine" I repeat. But I'm not. 

Since the game against Manchester United, things haven't improved. At the stadium no one has bothered me again, probably because Dani did talk with someone. And at the school people don't gossip about me anymore. But online…

Online the mole has kept sharing photos and things about me, the haters loving it, their mean comments getting worse and worse. And nothing seems to be stopping them, not even Pedri giving an interview and calling them out for their behaviour. 

"You are such a bad liar, Val…" Emma says. "And that's why you are having lunch with me and my family today."

"What?"

"Yep. You need to have a proper meal, and if there is someone who can give you that, that's my mum. So c'mon" she says, linking her arm with mine and starting to walk.

"Emma, I don't want to bother your family."

"You won't be bothering anyone. They haven't seen you in ages, they are looking forward to it."

"Shouldn't we get rid of this make up, first? I don't know how they will feel if we show up looking like skeletons."

"Stop inventing excuses and let's go" she says, dragging me outside the school.

"Bye, Miss Valeria! Happy Halloween!"

"Happy Halloween" I smile to some of the kids waiting for their parents. And when we cross the main gate…

"Cougar bitch!" someone yells.

"What the… Val!" Emma says. "Oh my God, Val. Are you ok?"

"I… I…" I mumble. I'm covered on something sticky. Something sticky that stinks and…

"Val, hey. Val!"

"I… I…"

"What the fuck are you doing, people?" I hear Emma say. "Stop taking photos! Show some respect!"

"Emma…" I whisper.

"It's ok, come" she says, putting an arm around my shoulders and making me walk.

"Girls! What happened?" Luis says, running towards us.

"Some teenagers threw eggs and god knows what else at Val when we were leaving."

"What?" 

"Emma… Emma, I don't feel ok" I manage to say.

"Don't worry, Val. You are safe now" Luis says, helping me walk. "We'll go inside and help you get cleaned."

"I… I can't… I can't breathe."

"Val… Val, hey… Val!" Emma says, her voice being the last thing I hear before everything turns black. 

━━━━━━❃━━━━━━

"Hello, beautiful."

"Pedri?" I say, slowly opening my eyes. "What… Where am I?"

"The hospital."

"What?"

"Woah, careful" he says when I try to get up from the bed. "You can't do that."

"Why? What… what happened?" I ask, my eyes still trying to adjust to how bright the light in the room is.

"You fainted at the school. Don't you remember?"

"I… I think…" The teenagers. Whatever they threw at me. Luis and Emma. "Fuck."

"I'll take that as you remembering" he chuckles. 

"How did I end here, tho?"

"After you fainted you weren't waking up, Emma got scared and called an ambulance. They ran some tests and turns out that everything in you is low. Your iron levels, the vitamins, other things I have no idea what they are… They were lucky they caught you when they did, you know? This could have been serious."

"I… I…" 

"You haven't been taken care of yourself, Val. And I…" Pedri says, running his hands through his hair. "I knew there was something going on. I could see it. But I'm stupid and…"

"Pedri, hey. Hey" I say, taking one of his hands on mine. "It isn't your fault."

"Isn't it?" he laughs. Though it is a sad laugh, one that makes my heart sink. "I knew you were struggling and I did nothing to stop it. To help you."

"Because I didn't let you. You, or Emma, or Silvia. You know how stubborn I am, it is all my fault."

"No, Val. This is…"

"Valeria!" my mother says, storming into the room. "Oh, Valeria, my poor child."

"Mum?"

"How are you, Val? When they told me they had taken you to the hospital I feared the worst."

"I… I'm fine" I say, trying to process this outburst of motherly love. "I just haven't been eating well and resting and…"

"And it is all his fault!" she says, looking at Pedri.

"Mum…"

"It is! He is the one to blame, the one who has pushed you to this, to almost dying!"

"Mum, that's not true."

"Have you seen yourself, Val? You are too thin, and the bags under your eyes reach the floor. And do you know why? Because of him. It is all because of him!" she says, pointing at Pedri. "Love should not have you looking like this!"

"She's right, Val" he says, his eyes focused on his hands.

"Of course I am!" my mum says, raising her voice more and more. "Get out of here!"

"What? No!" I complian.

"Get out of here, Pedro! I don't want to see you near my daughter ever again!"

"Mum, stop!"

"I said get out!"

"I… I'm sorry" he says, getting up from his chair and starting to walk away.

"No! Pedri, don't go!"

"Out!" my mum roars again.

"No! Pedri!" I say, trying to get up from the bed but only managing to get tangled with the sheets.

"He has to go, Val. This is all his fault."

"No! No, no, no. Pedri!" I yell, trying to free myself from my mum's grip.

"Is everything ok?" a nurse says, walking into the room. "Why is she screaming?"

"She needs to calm down. Can you give her something?"

"I don't want to calm down, mum! I want him! Pedri!" I yell again.

"I'm gonna call a doctor" the nurse says before leaving.

"I want him, mum" I cry. "I love him."

"I know you do, Val" she says while hugging me. "I know you do. But this is for the best, I promise you."

━━━━━━❃━━━━━━

"Val" Silvia says after knocking on my room's door. "He's here. Do I ask him to come in?"

"Yes, please" I reply, quickly opening my phone's camera to check myself. I've been resting in bed since I came back from the hospital, and I definitely look like shit.

"You look beautiful, Val."

"Bloody hell, Pedri" I say, my phone slipping from my hands and hitting the floor. When I look up he is leaning against the door's frame as he always does, that smirk I love so much in his face. "Do you do it on purpose?"

"Do what? Scare you?"

"No. That" I say, gesturing towards him. "Do you stand like that because you know I love it?" 

"I didn't know you loved it" he shrugs.

"Yeah, sure."

"I'm serious" he says, walking towards me and picking up my phone.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome" he smiles, sitting on my bed. Though that smile isn't one I love. It is a sad one. "How are you?"

"Good. But I've missed you" I say, reaching for his hand.

"Val…" Pedri says, avoiding my touch. "We need to talk."

"About what?"

"You know about what."

"No, I don't."

"Val…" he sighs. "We need to talk about what happened at the school. About you ending at the hospital, about what your mum said."

"My mum just said nonsense" I say, crossing my arms over my chest.

"Did she? Because I think she was right."

"What?" I laugh.

"Love should not make you feel like this. Anxious, scared, angry, sad… It should not make you feel so on edge that you end up at the hospital." 

"I'm not feeling like that."

"C'mon, Val. Can't you see it? Being with me is hurting you. And I… I can't keep seeing you suffer like this because of me. I… we… we should…"

"We should what? Break up?" 

"I'm sorry, Val. But it is for the best."

"The best?" I cry. "How is breaking up for the best? I love you!"

"And I love you too."

"Then why are you breaking up with me?"

"Because we are hurting each other, Val" he says, raising his voice. "Because I keep hurting you!"

"You aren't hurting me, Pedri. People are!"

"But they are hurting you because of me, because you are with me. It's the same!"

"It's… urgh!" I yell, throwing one of my pillows against the wall. The pillow with his photo on it to be precise.

"I'm sorry, Val, but your mum was right. It's best if I stay away."

"My mum knows nothing, Pedri. Nothing! She just said that because she's never liked you for whatever the reason!"

"It isn't for whatever the reason. She's never liked me because she was able to see that us being together was bound to end up with me hurting you."

"What?" I laugh and cry all at the same time.

"Goodbye, Val."

"What? No! Pedri, where are you going?" I say, getting up from my bed at the same time he does, having to hold to him to not fall.

"Look at you, Val. Look at you. This is all my fault" he says while hugging me. 

"It's not your fault. It isn't" I insist, my body trembling between his arms. "It's them, not you."

"I'm sorry, Val."

"No" I cry when he takes a step away. "Pedri, please, no."

"I love you, Val. I will always love you" he whispers, kissing my forehead and leaving the room.

"Pedri. Pedri, please… Pedri!" I yell. But he doesn't come back. He isn't coming back.

━━━━━━❃━━━━━━

"Beth, Luis. What are you doing here?" I say when I open the door of my apartment.

"We've come to check on you" she smiles.

"And to bring you this" he says, giving me a bouquet of flowers. 

"Oh, that's so kind of you" I reply while trying really hard not to cry, the memories of all the bouquets Pedri got me over the years coming back. "Please come in."

"Thank you" they say.

"So, how are you?" Beth says, taking my hand on hers.

"Been better, not gonna lie" I chuckle. "But my doctor said that physically I'm almost recovered."

"Good, that's good. Because we have something that may help you with everything else" Beth says.

"What do you mean?" I ask.

"We all know break ups aren't easy. Especially when two people love each other as much as you and Pe… him love each other. But there is something that I know always helps, and that's keeping yourself busy with something."

"I don't think I'm ready to go back to the school just yet…"

"We were thinking about something like that but different" Luis says, showing me a piece of paper he had in his pocket. "Have you ever heard about this program? It's like an Erasmus but for teachers."

"An Erasmus?" I ask.

"Yeah. Instead of spending a year abroad studying, you do it teaching." 

"We have a few friends who have tried it and they all have loved it. The other day we had dinner with some of them and they mentioned that there were some free spots that start in January and last just six months instead of the whole year" Beth explains. 

"And we thought that a change of scenery would do you good" Luis continues. "New country, new kids and parents, new language, culture, people…"

"Though not really” Beth says. “Because one of the free spots is in Manchester, and you have a friend there, don't you?"

"I do, yes. Ferran."

"Are things ok between you two?" she asks.

"They are, yes. He's been checking up on me daily since I was in the hospital" I say.

"Well, now he could do it in person and maybe help you with everything else so you don't feel so alone." 

"And who knows, he may even help you fix things with your boy and get back together."

"Luis!" Beth scolds him.

"What? You said it yourself!"

"I didn't, Val. I just… I…"

"It's ok" I smile. "And you are right. If there is someone who can help, that's Ferran."

"Then will you think about our offer?"

"I will, Beth. Thank you very much."

"Anything for you, Val" she says before hugging me. "Anything for you."

[eirikrjs]

UPDATE 9/2/23

Wow, it's almost fall and I'm still kickin', so here's a proper update about what's been going on with me. I do feel great most days, and with Halloween in season around the US, it makes me very happy. As far as stroke recovery goes, my leg has a newly made brace and my walking in general has greatly improved the past few months. I really don't roll my left foot anymore, in other words, my foot can go flat instead of landing on the ankle and possibly causing injury.

My arm is still mostly nothing but a couple weeks back I was able to move my shoulder again so there's hope. I also got a home electrical stimulation device so I give my arm and hand a jolt for an hour everyday. With time, I feel confident i'll recover.

A great help with my recovery has been the amazing @dagdasgoddess , a fellow young stroke survivor who has been watching out for me and offering encouragement every day for a couple months now, exactly when I needed it. Mentally, stroke recovery is pretty damn tough but most days I feel positive about it, with great thanks to her.

And now on to some business. Shortly before my stroke I was planning on celebrating the 10th anniversary of my blog (which would have been in December of last year, but I was still in the hospital, obviously...) And one of the things I was going to do was photograph and review all the smt demon figures I have, using my special diorama table. I got around to starting the project a couple weeks before the stroke, naturally starting with the Leonard figure. Here's one of the pics:

I also made something of an anniversary banner, just because, I guess:

I also want to talk about some milestones reached, starting with some follower counts. By December last year I finally surpassed 2k followers, so thank you so very much. This is after Kanekos Crib Notes quickly dwarfed my own blog followers shortly after its establishment in like 2014. But now my own blog is even ahead of kcn, as undoubtedly its current annual schedule limits its growth and reach. (But hey, it's almost October, aka KCN MONTH)

The last milestone is above: my Stealing Knowledge blogger has reached half a million views! Unbelievable, thanks for reading and sharing over the years! Identity crisis part 3 remains the most viewed, with over 50k on its own.

Finally, I want to talk about the future. Another 10th anniversary plan was to try and monetize the blog somehow, probably via a Patreon for new articles and such and many other ideas, maybe even doing YouTube videos to answer asks instead of them being all text. I have lots of other ideas too, but they'll have to wait until my arm works again. So instead of monetizing the future, for now I'm just going to ask y'all kindly to chip in for the blog's past. I'm amazed at how much activity the blog still generates from--let's call it "legacy content".

To that end, I have set myself up a kofi account where you can show your appreciation for that "legacy", kuwabara, kuwabara, if you'd like. All money earned will go towards paying down bills accrued during my recovery, like my hyperbaric treatments. In perfect honesty, it's been around 3000 US dollars so far. Don't feel obligated to contribute and thank you all for still sticking around with me despite my relative inactivity. And if course, continue keeping @sorenblr busy if you wish.

I would also not expect my own recovery before next year, that's just stroke for you. Thank you all!!!!!

p.s. I was featured as a stroke survivor again on another therapy facebook post:

[anincompletelist]

2023 writing roundup :D

hi all! thank you to @hgejfmw-hgejhsf @rockyroadkylers @songliili @littlemisskittentoes for the tags on this! I loved getting to go back through all of the works you guys have shared with us this year (and hearing about some of your upcoming projects as well!)

I realized that I did do a year in review post, but that was mostly stats, so I figured I'd participate in this one as well since it'd be nice to have all of my fics linked in one place for organizational purposes!

thank you guys for everything this year, I can't wait for all that's coming in the next one! <3

sarah / anincompletelist xx

Sure As The Stars in the Sky | E | 20k

It shouldn't matter that Alex has been present for each and every one of Henry's most important life milestones, sometimes the singular catalyst for them. It shouldn't be important that he's grown to be more familiar to Henry than even some of his own family members, that part of him is burrowed so deeply into Henry's subconscious that he can taste it sometimes, that even when Alex crashes in, spirited and passionate, it feels like an easy exhale; like coming home. It shouldn't matter, but it does.

praying our bridges don't make waves | E | 82k

When June gets sick, Alex knows he'll do whatever it takes to make sure she gets the care that she needs. Even if that means convincing his nemesis/sexuality-crisis-inducing/clandestine hook-up partner/somewhat of an actual friend to pretend to be his soulmate in order to pull it off. It's both more and less complicated than it sounds.

kiss me like you've got nowhere to be | M | 3k

In the three years they’ve lived together, he thinks it’s safe to say that he and Alex have gotten… close. The kind of close that other people like to point out sometimes when they’re in public, and not just their overinvolved older sisters and overly suggestive friends. A few of Alex’s colleagues have made comments when Henry shows up at the holiday parties or after a stressful work day to make sure Alex is eating and staying hydrated, just the same as Henry’s clients each know little bits of odd Alex-facts that he lets slip sometimes in his sessions. Regardless, it’s all terribly domestic, and the twinge of satisfaction Henry gets when Alex’s dates don’t go well is most definitely not appropriate, even if they are kind of in a weird, probably mostly platonic, very codependent relationship. If he’s not careful, Henry’s going to get himself so, so hurt one of these days.

I feel the beating of your heart, I see the shadows on your face | M | 18k

It’s certainly not what Alex would have predicted a few days prior. If someone had told him he’d be tenderly embracing his self-imposed enemy after switching bodies with him for seventy-two hours and embarking on an unintentional journey of self discovery and then finally finding their way back to each other to ask for a True Love’s Kiss that may or may not break the curse that flipped their lives upside down - Well, Alex would have told them to fuck off.

but I can count on you to tell me the truth when (I've) been drinking and you're wearing a mask | M | 8k

The room goes quiet again, Alex too focused on the sound of his own breathing. He’s already started, he figures, and the person still hasn’t left. But this next bit is a little more personal, and Alex isn’t positive what the parameters are for one-sidedly conversing with a masked stranger about your best kept secrets at a halloween party when you’re so drunk that the floor is beginning to look like it may open up and swallow you whole. Isn’t sure if that might be better anyway.

who ya gonna call? | M | 7k

Henry is a ghostwriter. Alex is a little confused on what exactly that means.

I'll bet it all on me and you, I'll bet it all you're bulletproof | M | 11k

“Let’s do this,” he says. “Let’s,” Alex agrees, pushing down on the handle until the door swings open. “After you, boyfriend.” This is most definitely not his finest idea. Henry usually practices much better self preservation skills. Much better common senseskills. He steps over the threshold of Alex’s room and it feels like sealing his fate. They’re doing this for Alex to win over their bosses in a lighthearted game with a harmless lie, but Henry can’t fight off the bitter knowledge that, regardless of how tonight goes, Alex will be fine, but Henry has so much to lose.

(+ listen to the podfic here!)

but if you could see us from a distance you'd know I've always been so close to you | E | 10k

Objectively, standing half-soaked from rainwater with a stitch in his side and an uncomfortable, raging hard-on outside his worst enemy’s door is not Henry’s finest moment. It’s not even on the list. [or, henry is afflicted with a curse-gone-wrong that stipulates that only his sworn enemy, alex claremont-diaz, can touch him.]

you make it look so easy, I know it's not | T+ | 8k

Bea’s to his left, speaking frantically on the phone with who Henry hopes is the fire brigade or someone else trained to deal with these— situations. In front of him, Pez is fumbling frustratedly with the water hose, showcasing his colorful vocabulary with a flourish of jerky hand movements and chaotic pacing. On either side of the fence, his neighbors are peaking over the sides to ask if everything’s okay, and Henry feels the resolution to make a good first impression crumbling and slipping rapidly out of his grasp. Even David watches on from inside the house, his sage eyes and patriotic bowtie appraising the scene and looking back to Henry as if to say I told you so. And the fryer — the fryer itself is up in flames, thick gray smoke swirling up into the air and soaring high above the tree line now. In the distance, the echo of sirens. Henry may faint right here, in the middle of his backyard at his new home before he's even unpacked, with all the neighbors and his family and friends watching on, on his first official American Thanksgiving. It is, by all means, not what he’d envisioned for the day.

somehow I'd get by (part one) | E | 13k

Henry should have known, probably, that accepting a job offer from Pez would have its nuances. It’s his own fault that he hadn’t asked more questions, that he hadn’t regarded it as a red flag when he’d had to sign several very thick NDA’s at the onboarding, when Pez had smiled so big and so secretively when they went out to celebrate afterward that Henry had to physically look away from it. Though he’s new to the city, he’d thought that working as an accountant wouldn’t offer all that many opportunities for any sort of overly odd, eclectic jobs. So he’d shown up on his first day at the provided address, a big, nondescript brick building in front of him with a duffel bag full of his sign-on papers, his computer, and a framed photo of his dog, David, ready to take up its rightful place on yet another boring, blank desk. He’d made it all of two steps inside the door before realizing that he’d just accepted a contract working for some kind of sex club. He’d stood his ground despite the burning flush that bloomed on his cheeks and then, miraculously, he’d stayed.

take my hand if you can take me as I am | E | 14k

It would hurt less, Alex guesses, if he wasn’t head over heels for the guy he’s supposed to be fucking through an ancient one-sided sex curse with that was partially — a lot, actually — his own fault. But. It’s not like there’s a fucking handbook. Alex has looked. 

if you take a life, do you know what you'll give? | M | 9k

It would have been one thing had Alexander’s job description been simply to stay in his hotel room and operate the funds covertly, an exceedingly safe distance away from Henry and any of Le Chiffre’s men. As it is, they’d instructed Alex to play the part of Henry’s date for the night, subsequently granting him the access he’d need to the private cardroom within the casino in order to report back to headquarters the funds needed in the precise moment Henry would need them. It's too dangerous, and he knows it. Henry's had a lot of blood on his hands in this life, but he refuses to have Alex's as well.

miles to go, but we're almost home | M | 5k

Texas is a bit of a last minute decision. As in, at the actual last minute, Henry had begged them at the station for whatever ticket they had left to get out of the city, shoved his credit card at them expeditiously, and promptly boarded the vessel just as the doors slid closed behind him. Turns out it’s the best decision he’s ever made.

something borrowed, something blue | (to begin posting jan 1!)

dom!alex part two

dom!henry

+

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU ALL FOR BEING HERE TO WITNESS ME SCREAM INTO THE VOID! this space has meant so much to me since I first read the book when it came out, but even more so once I started writing again these last few months. 2022/2023 was a very long, very lonely time in my life and I just didn't have words for a while. when the movie came out, I remembered how much I loved the book and finally opened a blank page again! I needed an outlet, and I found so much more than that <3

PLEASE consider this an open tag to brag on yourselves, but also (no pressure) --

@firenati0n @affectionatelyrs @kiwiana-writes @daisymae-12 @read-and-write- @inexplicablymine @happiness-of-the-pursuit @heybuddy-drabbles @wordsofhoneydew @nocoastposts @firstsprinces @sparklepocalypse @ninzied @getmehighonmagic @iboatedhere @magicandarchery @matherines @zwiazdziarka @raysletters @cricketnationrise @xthelastknownsurvivorx @gayrootvegetable @lizzie-bennetdarcy @eusuntgratie @whimsymanaged @priincebutt @duchessdepolignaca03 @leojfitz @user-anakin @anchoredarchangel @tinyarmedtrex @rmd-writes

cheers to a wonderful year, friends! I am so grateful for all of you and for this space that we've created to share and connect with each other and the art that inspires us. here's hoping 2024 has a lot more of that! <333

xx

[lucidfallacy]

This Is Halloween (Copycat Part 2) Spencer Reid x Reader 18+

As a child, Halloween was a time for smudged black cat whiskers and a dotted nose, drawn on my face with cheap crayon face paint. Momma would drive me all the way into town in our not-so-reliable blue station wagon so that we could hit the 'rich people' neighborhoods. My pillowcase would be bursting at the seams after just a couple of houses. We'd prance up and down the city streets, hand in hand as I wore my little black leotard and tutu that I'd end up refusing to take off for the next week. Back at our farmhouse, Momma searched my stash for candied razorblades as I cuddled up, comforted by the cherry almond scent of her hair. Daddy still isn't home? Why does she look sad? I remember thinking. But our wood stove carried on, heating the living room in a heavenly glow as I stuffed my cheeks with chocolate. In a pure sugar coma, I'd pass out in her arms to a movie like Halloween Town playing in the background. I found comfort in the restless hum of cicadas on the quiet, rural Pennsylvania nights. My reality was always peaceful like that.

But I was only eight on that Halloween night. After I had just experienced the good things all kids should. The hogs squealed with glee out by the side barn, startling me from my sugar-induced sleep on the couch. When I tiptoed to peer out of the kitchen's candlelit dusty windows, I rubbed my eyes in disbelief. Why is Daddy feeding the pigs trash bags? I wondered. And the swine were far too hungry to pass it up.

Little did I know how numbered my days really were. How I'd end up chasing familiar smells and childhood memories, forever damned to be without the high of blissful freedoms again. The real world, in simple terms, is scary. That fact alone had me maturing overnight. Every day people can be villains. You may have sat next to one on the bus this morning or had a mindless conversation with them while you both stood in line for coffee. But, the real monster in my life will forever haunt my bloodline. The Clearfield Butcher. He's the very real reason I'll never stop working for the FBI. And I swear I'll be the reason that some little girl might not have to grow up so fast someday.

"Oh my god bitch slow down!" Penelope squeaks as I knock back another disgustingly colorful zombie brain shot.

"Yeah L/N it's not going anywhere, we have all night," Emily adds, patting my back.

We are seated at a rounded corner booth of the progressively indie bar, Tipsy Pumpkin. I watch on as the other partygoers lose themselves on the dance floor, dressed in all sorts of intricate costumes and already sloppily drunk. It's intoxicating, how heavy the atmosphere is with shared breaths and hot sensual sweat. The DJ is sporting the same sunflower glasses worn by Art the Clown from the movie Terrifier. He hypes up the crowd with the song Nasty Dog by Sir Mix-A-lot. It's pitch black in here, only illuminated by the occasional white and red strobe light flying around the club. Very cutesy, very gothic.

Penelope surprised me with her rendition of sexy Velma from that one live-action Scooby-Doo film. She's literally in a full fuckin' orange latex suit, zipper pulled down leaving little to the imagination. Morgan is gonna drool all over himself when he sees her ass at the function. Emily decided to match her, wearing a dark green crop top and brown corduroy bell bottoms. Yes, like sexy shaggy. Remember in the movie, when he drank the wrong potion from the fridge? Well anyway, we are already a margarita flight deep now that it's 9:30 pm and still waiting on JJ to arrive. It never crosses our minds to antagonize her about being late. After all, she has two little ones to care for. Hotch is hosting the actual party at his house, surprisingly. Beth probably talked him into it. But that doesn't start until 11 pm and is apparently going until he decides to kick us out.

My buzzing phone catches my attention as the screen lights up from inside my bag. I pull it out, slightly distracted by someone in a blowup dinosaur costume attempting to twerk in the sea of people. My smile quickly fades as I look down at my screen. No Caller ID. I look to both of the girls feigning ignorance and politely excuse myself. I slink away into a quieter side hall next to the booth. Annoyance overcomes me as I prepare to answer.

Me: Look dude I don't-

Caller: Forget something? Leaving candles burning now are we?

Me: What the fu- excuse me?

Caller: Don't worry, I snuffed it out. Smelled so good, just like you.

Me: Okay, haha I'm so scared, you got me. Now fuck off. or I'll-

Caller: Oh? You'll what? Don't be like that. I'm not quite done with you yet-

I hang up the call in a huff. What in the hell? Did I not blow my candle out? No, I must have. I'm good about remembering things like that. Whatever, I'm just about to hand my phone over to Garcia and have her deal with this shit. I stomp back towards the table and see JJ snuggled up in the middle of the other two, wearing historically accurate pirate gear. My brain quickly forgets the strange caller. I really just want to make some good memories with my team.

"No way! Did your boys pick that out? That's too cute! Just remember, I'm supposed to be the one getting booty tonight," I giggle, holding each of JJ's hands from across the table.

"Ahhh stop! I love you. No but seriously, is there a single cute guy in here? I can't tell from all the body paint and blowup dinosaurs," she laughs, tucking a golden strand of hair behind her ear as she adjusts her hat.

It's true. The girls took me out tonight because I'm in a 'rut' or whatever they called it. I haven't been with anyone in a couple of years now. Putting relationships on the back burner was the smartest decision I could've made for my career anyway. I sped through my degree, did my community service, and boom I was hired into the FBI. Maybe I do a decent job of hiding it, but I haven't been interested in anyone really. Well, there's Spencer, but we all know how that's going for me. And the team would bother the absolute dog piss out of me if they knew about it. For now, I'm cool with them believing we are mortal enemies for life.

"I don't know, but there's bound to be a man in uniform somewhere around here," I tease.

The rhythmic bump of the club's music evolves into a sluttier beat. Pain by Boy Harsher echoes in waves through my chest as the strobe lights fade to a deep ultraviolet. Must be the combination of alcohol and musical energy working in my favor to soothe my earlier inhibitions, because now I'm ready to dance. Almost in unison with my eager thoughts, a firm hand wraps around my waist and pulls me close. Penelope quirks an eyebrow as JJ and Emily giggle like a couple of school girls. I crane my neck to look up at the towering man whose chest I'm fitted against. He wears a simple black leather jacket on top of his hoodie. His mask is a dark silver metallic, made to resemble a chiseled skull. It's outlined in intricate lace patterns, with two horns sprouting from the forehead. And his eyes are a jaded hazel, littered with flecks of gold and emerald green. Damn. Did I say uniform? This is fine too. We enter a sort of silent staring contest as the music fades out. Our pupils dilate, darting to meet each other's as we search for unspoken intentions.

"Well you two go have funnn, I'll be here finishing up your drinks... Y/N, play nice," Penelope suggests as she shoos me away.

Before I can protest, the masked man spins me around, leading me to my certain doom. He filters us through the busy crowd, sheltering me from flying elbows in his arms. We find a comfortable spot away from the DJ booth's mammoth speakers and fall into the rhythm. His gloved hands rub tender circles over my hip bones as we sway around. We press close together once more as he kneads my flesh. I must be insanely touch-starved from how weak it makes me. His gloved hand glides up to brush against my bottom lip, making me shy away. The man leans down into my ear as we spin, breath tickling me through his skull-faced mask.

"I've been watching you all night," he admits, voice huskily accented by a language I can't quite pinpoint.

"Yeah? Well, you're not the only one," I reply, hand traveling up his chest. A quiet laugh rumbles in his chest.

"That's why I had to snag you up. God knows who you could've ended up with. There's a bunch 'a freaks out tonight," he explains, voice low.

I finally get a good whiff of his cologne and decide I am definitely a fucking goner. The woodsy musk has my mouth watering, but I gotta play the game first.

"Hmm, well I can take care of myself. And God knows if you're any better. I don't even know what you look like. Hiding something?" I say sarcastically, my pointer finger pressed up against the bottom of the mask. But he grabs my wrist firmly before I press any further.

"I'll make a deal with ya. If you kiss me I'll take off anything you want. Scouts honor, it'll be worth your time," the man groans, taking in my scent through his mask.

I gasp from the cold sharp plastic brushing against my jugular. He backs me into the bar's brick-lined wall, tipping my head up to await my answer. This annoying god damned phone begins ringing once again in my other hand, but I wait a few moments and ignore it. My nose crinkles nervously as I avert his eyes for a moment in thought. I look around his shoulder to the red LED light-lined bar across the room. On the other end of the L-shaped counter, a man sits completely focused on us. He's a spot-on scream copycat. Completely cloaked, almost unnoticeable among the commotion. The three dark voids of his white mask are hypnotizing, making me forget the very situation I'm in. The crimson glow of the bar casts eerily picturesque shadows across him. He crooks his head, fingers wiggling as he brandishes the bright screen of a cellphone in the air. Buzz. Buzzz. No Caller ID. My throat dries, swallowing hard as I clutch my companion's jacket. My thumb slides to answer, never looking away from the ghostly face across the bar. The blaring music is synchronous on the other line.

Caller: How fast do you think he'll bleed out once I cut his dick off?

[laughroditee]

COD Fanfic Collab Feeler Post (Poll at bottom)

Hello, my lovelies! I am thinking about hosting a fic event built around the idea of "exquisite corpse," where everyone writes a little bit, but no one knows what anyone else is writing until the very end, and the result is a finished piece of bizarre fiction.

🚨SOME GROUND RULES🚨 (I may add more if more come up. Yes, I am a hag.)

There will be a central theme to unify everyone's pieces, though the end result will still be weird AF, like a glitch in the Matrix. There may also be a tone as well, but I'm still deciding on that.

In total, this would be a month-long event, with a maximum number of participants equal to the number of days in that month. So if we do October (which is what I hope to do, but we'll see), a maximum of 31 participants. For November: 30. You get the picture. If the event does not gain enough participants to max out, whoever has joined by the cutoff will just go again, and we'll cycle through until the end.

This would run a bit like a baton relay since each person's contribution builds on the previous installment. For example, I'll start the fic as number one (because it's my event), then send the last sentence to number two. Number two sends their last sentence to number three, and so on. Due to this, TIMING IS SO IMPORTANT! We want to be able to get through everyone's posts in a timely manner since we're not all writing at the same time; we're doing it in a chain.

For that reason, WRITING would take place the month before, and each writer would schedule their post for their assigned day at noon during the event month. So, if we really are going to be doing a Halloween fic, then writing would take place in September, with each post being scheduled for the writer's assigned day in October.

If this is a thing that will happen, I will be making everyone a shitty event banner to place at the top of their post with the event and their entry number so people know this is a chain of fics, and appropriate links to the beginning, previous entry, and next entry should be included in your post to support your fellow creators and help readers navigate the bullshit of this thing we're building together. (I understand that some links won't be able to be added until the posts are public.)

A common event tag should also be used but I haven't decided what it is yet. Probably "#cod exquisite corpse" to keep it simple.

Everyone gets a word count CAP of 500 words. So LESS THAN 500 words is ideal! If you go over 500, those extra words will be cut off, and whatever is left in that truncated sentence is what will get sent to the next person to finish and build on as their prompt (so be kind to the person after you and don't go over).

Smut is okay (tag your post with appropriate warnings - I will say no CNC or non-con for this, sorry), but I will challenge everyone to use gender-neutral!Reader and/or canon x canon to keep everyone on the same page and to let as many people have a good time here. If that doesn't sound like a good time to you, you don't have to participate. If you need tips on writing gender-neutral smut, please leave a comment, and I'm sure our lovely community can give some tips.

Please also watch for POC-inclusive writing, as not every skin tone blushes, not everyone wants/can have fingers running through their hair, etc. Again, if you need help with this, there have been MANY posts floating around in the community if you've missed them. You can also leave a comment, and we'll see if we can get some tips together.

Please be inclusive about body size, in both height and weight, so that our tall and fat Readers can get some love too. As such, there will be no size difference kinks for this event. I realize that making a "perfectly neutral Reader" may be challenging (and "perfect" is a loaded term), but I know it's doable, as I've seen people do it. If you don't want to do that, no one is forcing you to participate.

No killing characters since that's a major continuity issue lol. 💀 There will already be enough continuity issues with people fucking every other chapter with zero further mention of it, but that's beside the point.

And finally, keep it light, keep it fun, AND BE KIND. Fandom is supposed to be silly-funny, so let's get along and make our dolls kiss everyone.

I realize this is a lot, and honestly, this event may not pan out. It may be a lot more like herding cats than anything else. I'm just making this post to preemptively determine how much interest there is before I go making event banners and stuff and wasting my time.

So finally...

[ricky-fitness-ukagaka]

Ricky Fitness Ukagaka/ Ghost!!

Hello anyone possibly seeing this!! This blog is going to serve as a documentation of making a ghost of Ricky Fitness, the drummer for the band The Aquabats! I don't really expect this to gain any traction as it's just going to be a place for me to keep all my info together but if you're interested by where this goes by all means please follow along!!

I had the idea for this ghost while I was at work today lol and it's been all I can think about so I really hope I follow through on this

Why Ricky? Years and years ago my stepdad got me into the Aquabats, specifically the Super Show and I was obsessed with it. Immediately Ricky was my favorite, I dressed up as him for halloween one year and actually had an aquabats themed birthday. Then in 2019 I got see them live when they went on tour. After that I sortaaaa forgot about them for a while until I saw them on their most recent Finally tour!! I saw them a few days ago and waow it brought back the obsession FAST!! I actually got to high five Ricky after the show and yea shit was back full force lol. Been binging the super show lately and just finished s2 and I'll move onto the radventure series soon.

I know I could (and probably should) make this about a more and wildly known character but anyone could do that, pretty sure most people aren't making Ricky ghosts so here I am

Timeline- I really have no idea how long this is gonna take as I have never done this lol. I'm still in school and have work so my free time is limited but at the least I would like this to be done before next summer starts. This may be a good or awful estimate of time but again I have no clue so...!

To make this I am using the ghost walkthrough by Zarla the creator of the Undertale AU, Handplates (my fav au🫶). I will link that guide at the bottom.

I haven't officially even started this besides downloading the template but I'm hoping to really start it tomorrow

This specific post will be updated every time I make progress on this . I have little coding experience besides customizing html code on toyhouse so I really don't know how long this is gonna take.

uhhh I think this is it for now so uh If you see this follow my main @sailinginstars 🗣️🗣️ tbh im not too active but ill try to be for this. anyways the guide is this

gn chat i gotta lock in if theres any spelling mistakes ill fix in the morning lol🤞 (07-24-2024)